Arthur Rimbaud was a French Decadent poet who produced his best known works in his late teens and gave up creative writing before he reached 21. This recently discovered photo is of the poet, second from the right, at around 30 years of age. Known as a libertine and a restless soul, he traveled extensively before his death from cancer shortly his 37th birthday.
Sensation 
On blue summer evenings, I’ll go down the paths,
Getting pricked by the wheat, walking on thin grass:
Dreamer, I’ll feel its freshness at my feet:
I’ll let the wind bathe my bare head.
I won’t speak, I won’t think about anything:
But infinite love will rise in my soul;
And I’ll go far, very far, as a bohemian,
Into Nature, — blessed as if with a woman.
Had no idea he gave up writing so young – what came next? Also – about your previous post, I think that Hitchcock’s film has affected quite a few people. It’s impossible to get that image out of your mind and it only takes the sound of flapping wings to bring back that scene. Good thing so many poets lived before that film. . .
I love the mysterious Rimbaud. There are a number of different versions of what happened to him once he stopped writing. Great to see the photo & read his words, too bad you didn’t include the original french as well.
In addition to the other charms of this post, it was a nice touch to show the poem in the handwritten original French.
My word verification was “interse” — an “interesting” combination of “intense” and “terse”?
Oops I just realized you did indeed include the poem in it’s original French… a hand written version at that … even better… alas my eyesight , I did not at fisrt make it out. So sorry about that.
Rimbaud is a wonderful poet – I am glad that this picture is putting the spotlight back on him, even if the picture itself is arguably of fairly limited interest…
Thanks for sharing.
http://davidikus.blogspot.com/
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Alena
http://dataentryjob-s.com
Suzanne, a lot of traveling, tempestuous romances with Verlaine,and some letter writing.
It’s true that that movie is hard to forget!
Isn’t it fabulous that an image of the original is circling around?
Lorenzo–that sounds much too much like a real word.
Davidikus, glad you enjoyed it!