Hector Berlioz's Obsession and the Creation of Symphonie fantastique

Hector Berlioz and Harriet Smithson

• Hector Berlioz: 23-year-old, French music student
• Harriet Smithson: Irish actress playing Ophelia in Hamlet
• Infatuation: Berlioz becomes obsessed with Smithson, though he doesn’t understand English
• Love Letters: Berlioz writes numerous letters to Smithson, who cannot understand them
• Behavior: Spies on her by renting nearby rooms and