Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891)

Jean-Nicholas-Arthur Rimbaud was born on October 20, 1854 at Charleville in provincial France.

In 1870, restless and despondent over the loss of his favorite teacher (who'd left to fight in the Franco-Prussian War), Rimbaud ran away from home. He ran away more than once before finally making it to Paris. Broke, Rimbaud lived on the city streets. Immersed in his rebellion, he denounced women and the church. He lived willingly in squalid conditions, studying "immoral" poets (such as Baudelaire) and reading voraciously everything from occult to philosophy.

His own poetic philosophy began to take shape at this time. To Rimbaud, the poet was a seer. His job was to jar and jangle the senses. A precursor to surrealism, Rimbaud is also considered to have been one of the creators of the free verse style.

In 1871, Rimbaud met Paul Verlaine — who was ten years his senior — and moved into his household. If their friendship was controversial, their sexual relationship was downright scandalous. Though Verlaine vacillated all his life between dark-doings and repentance, Rimbaud was considered at that time to be Verlaine's undoing. Rimbaud's drug taking and generally unclean living eventually alienated everyone except Verlaine. In 1872, Verlaine left his wife. He and Rimbaud moved to London.

By 1873, Rimbaud was disenchanted by his relationship with Verlaine. During a drunken argument in Brussels, Verlaine shot at Rimbaud, hitting him once in the wrist. Rimbaud was tired of their downward spiral and called in the police. Verlaine was sent to prison for 18 months.

Rimbaud's collection of poetry and prose pieces UNE SAISON EN ENFER (A Season in Hell) appeared in 1873. The spiritual autobiography did not gain critical success and Rimbaud gave up writing shortly after its publication. Verlaine, whom he saw last time in 1875, and with whom he had a violent quarrel, published a selection of Rimbaud's poems and wrote about him in LES POETES MAUDITS (1884).

In 1875-76 Rimbaud learned several languages and started his wanderings again. He enlisted in the Netherlands army but deserted in Sumatra, in 1876 Rimbaud settled in Vienna and in the1880s he travelled as an arms dealer and explorer in North Africa. He died in Marseille on November 10, 1891, where his right leg had to be amputated because of cancer.