“The thing is very easy.”

Original: La chose est très facile. — Rimbaud’s confidence in the feasibility of his plans contrasts with the uncertainty surrounding his later life. · Letter to his family from Aden, 18 January 1882 (French)

• Confidence
• Opportunity
• Work

“I understand that I was always of an inferior race.”

Original: Je comprends que j’ai toujours été de race inférieure. — The statement deepens the work’s exploration of inherited identity, estrangement and refusal of conventional belonging. · A Season in Hell, Bad Blood, 1873 (French)

• Belonging
• Exile
• Identity

“I shall never get what I want in these countries.”

Original: Je n’arriverai jamais à ce que je voudrais, dans ces pays. — Rimbaud’s practical ambitions remain frustrated by the conditions of expatriate commercial life. · Letter from Aden, 15 January 1885 (French)

• Ambition
• Disappointment
• Work