The French writer Joris-Karl Huysmans (1848-1907) became known in Germany primarily through his novels "À rebours" ("Against the Grain," 1884) and "Là-bas" ("Down There," 1891). "À rebours" is considered one of the most important testimonies of literary decadence at the Fin de siècle, with its protagonist, the dandy Jean des Esseintes, who succumbs to aestheticism, embodying the "décadent." In "Là-bas," the writer Durtal, fascinated by Satanism and black magic, follows in the footsteps of the child killer Gilles de Rais, who was burned in the 15th century for his numerous crimes and bloodthirsty magical rituals. However, in both novels, the seeds of Huysmans' turn towards faith are already sown, culminating in his conversion to Catholicism in 1892, multiple stays in monasteries, and, from 1900 onwards, a life as an oblate.