A Life of Letters and Criticism Théophile Gautier was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, and art and literary critic. Born in Tarbes, in the Hautes-Pyrénées département of southwestern France, he later moved to Paris. His education took place at Collège Louis-le-Grand and Collège Charlemagne. Throughout his career, he was a frequent contributor to various journals, most notably La Presse, and later served as the director of Revue de Paris and the editor of L’Artiste. He also worked for Le Moniteur universel. Gautier was a well-travelled man, undertaking journeys to several locati…