“I am not here to be happy.”

Original: Je ne suis pas venu ici pour être heureux. — The statement reflects Rimbaud’s austere view of expatriate life as work and survival rather than pleasure. · Letter to his family from Aden, 1880s (French)

• Acceptance
• Travel
• Work

“Aden is, as everyone admits, the most boring place in the world, after the one where you live.”

Original: Aden qui est, tout le monde le reconnaît, le lieu le plus ennuyeux du monde, après toutefois celui que vous habitez. — Rimbaud turns his frustration with Aden into a characteristically dry joke at his family’s expense. · Letter to his family from Aden, 22 September 1880 (French)

• Boredom
• Humour
• Place

“I do not arrive at what I would like in these countries.”

Original: Je n’arriverai jamais à ce que je voudrais, dans ces pays. — The remark conveys a persistent sense of thwarted ambition despite years of effort abroad. · Letter from Aden, 15 January 1885 (French)

• Ambition
• Disappointment
• Exile