AustLit

'‘Fin de siècle’ is a French language phrase that has gone international, far beyond
francophone countries. It has certainly been adopted by English speakers. Denoting the
end of a century, its literal meaning was utilised in Fins de Siècle: How Centuries End,
1400–2000, edited by Asa Briggs and Daniel Snowman, which explored the influence
of time consciousness since the end of the fourteenth century of the Common Era.
But the phrase especially refers to the end of the nineteenth century, sometimes with
a connotation of decadence. It is true that other phrases, such as ‘La Belle Époque’, the
‘Gay Nineties’ and the ‘Gilded Age’, refer to the closing years of that century too. They
tend to be associated with a specific time frame, country or style. Together, they point
to what was an important and interesting historical epoch.' (Introduction)