Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud, born in Charleville, in France, in 1854 remains one of the most famous French poets of all time.
Equally remarkable as his longevity, and how “cool” he is still perceived to be, is the impact he has had on so many contemporary artists and musicians.
The new biopic A Complete Unknown, starring and produced by Timothée Chalamet, which is currently doing the rounds of cinemas across the UK, offers a timely reminder of just how much one of the all-time greatest musicians, Bob Dylan, was influenced by the life and work of Rimbaud.
The Frenchman, of course, was not simply prolific in his writings - he was also a poetic prodigy. From as early as the age of nine, he was winning national academic competitions and, by 15, his poems were being published in literary reviews. From the very beginning, he saw his chosen vocation as a spiritual calling. In his letters, Lettres du voyant, a 16-year-old Rimbaud likened poets to "seers”, and he strived to become one himself by losing his own individual consciousness and being taken over by "the unknown” - in his case, the music of the universe, the greater life force, or divinity itself.
Rimbaud achieved this, apparently, by developing a creative process known as disordering of all the senses: exposing himself to fasting, pain, alcohol, drugs and other mind-altering substances. Absinthe, what he called the “sagebrush of the glaciers” became a favourite.
Destined to retire aged 20, and to die in 1891 at just 37, Rimbaud - the poet, enigma and icon - nevertheless helped to inspire generations of creative youngsters across the world.
Another part of his strong appeal to a young and receptive audience, of course, was - and still is - the way in which he actually lived his brief but turbulent life.
He rejected the doctrines of realism and naturalism to write in a way now known as symbolism. A forerunner of the symbolists and even surrealism, he deliberately cultivated his world of unreality, famously saying, "I accustomed myself to simple hallucination".
Described at times as a self-proclaimed Bohemian (not to mention “Punk’s unlikely grandfather”), Rimbaud also ran away from home on more than one occasion, tried to join the army to fight the Prussians, and was arrested in Paris.
While still a teenager himself, he entered into an intense and tumultuous love affair with fellow French poet Paul Verlaine. That only came to an end when Verlaine threatened to kill himself to try to prevent Rimbaud from leaving him. Rimbaud called his bluff - only to be shot in the arm by Verlaine.
It was not long after this, that Rimbaud retired from writing, to travel the world both with the army and alone, as a ‘vagabond’.
He cast aside the philosophical unknown and instead opted for physical adventure, traveling to the Alps, visiting Egypt and eventually traveling back and forth to Africa under the employment of a coffee trader.
In simple terms, Rimbaud embodied everything that was counterculture: a visionary marching to a beat of his own, indulging in sex and alcohol, and creating masterpieces on war and youth and eroticism before disappearing from the literary sphere at the brink of adulthood. His light burned bright, he died young: something that was true of many musical artists of the time.
Since then, countless musicians, artists, poets and students worldwide have been inspired by Rimbaud.
Not least, the poet Patti Smith - “the high priestess of Punk” - who broke onto the New York music scene and who, in Just Kids, describes reading Rimbaud’s Illuminations at the age of sixteen and finding herself infatuated with his poetry.
Famously, Illuminations was one of the only objects she took with her when she moved to New York, and his work played a big role in her decision to start writing poetry and, later, when entering the world of music. She talked of Rimbaud as her muse, and compared her relationship with him to a romantic one.
Rimbaud has been quoted and referenced by several other artists besides, including Jim Morrison, The Clash and Allen Ginsberg. And, most famously of all, perhaps, by Bob Dylan. Rimbaud’s provocative, idealistic and avant-garde works would inspire several of Dylan’s songs and help launch yet another entirely new art form.
And Dylan himself, a creator of "vision music", has often cited Rimbaud as a favourite poet. "I came across one of his letters called Je est un autre, which translates into ’I is someone else’. When I read those words the bells went off. It made perfect sense. I wished someone would have mentioned that to me earlier," he wrote in his Chronicles Vol.1.
Completing this part of the story, it’s also quite timely to note that it was Susan Elizabeth Rotolo (“Suze”) - who was Dylan’s girlfriend from 1961 to 1964 and who became a strong influence on his music and art during that period - whofirst introduced Dylan to Rimbaud’s poetry. Suze, played by Elle Fanning in the movie, is the girl seen walking with him on the cover of his 1963 album The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan.
He also name-drops Rimbaud and Verlaine’s relationship in You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When I Go’, a track from the Blood on the Tracks album. Recorded in September 1974, the album itself was released exactly 50 years ago, in January 1975.
The song's lyrics have generated multiple interpretations: but whether confessional, or simply inspired by literature, the lyrics are widely recognised as Dylan's most masterfully written love poem.
Many believe the song describes Dylan's relationship issues with his wife during the time when they were separated. And, Ellen Bernstein, a girlfriend of Dylan's in 1974 during that separation period, claims that the song was about their relationship.
Dylan himself appears to say that the song was inspired by literature. Rolling Stone reported that in his memoir, Chronicles: Volume 1, "Dylan was assumed to be referring to Blood on the Tracks when he wrote: ‘I would even record an entire album based on Chekhov short stories. Critics thought it was autobiographical - that was fine’.”
But lines like ‘Situations have ended sad / Relationships have all been bad / Mine’ve been like Verlaine’s and Rimbaud"’ do appear to be direct comparison to the tumultuous two-year romance between French Symbolist poets Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine.
The final word, meanwhile, should belong to Rimbaud. Alchemy of the Word, is a chapter in Arthur Rimbaud's extended poem A Season in Hell (1873). In it, he writes, "I flattered myself with the belief that I had invented a poetic language that, one day or another, would be understood by everyone”. In common with so many artists, he never got to witness the full legacy of his life’s work.
And, for anyone wanting to Follow in the Footsteps of Rimbaud, there is no better place to do that today, than in The French Ardennes.