One of the most devastating poems in the collection comes from the “Fleurs du Mal” section: a poem entitled “Un Voyage à Cythère” (A Voyage to Cythera).
One of the most devastating poems in the collection comes from the “Fleurs du Mal” section: a poem entitled “Un Voyage à Cythère” (A Voyage to Cythera). Cythera is the Greek island believed to have been the birthplace of Venus, goddess of love. The poet commences his journey to the island of love full of hope and joy, but as he approaches Cythera, he sees in the distance a hanged man on a scaffold being pecked at by birds. As he comes closer, he sees an image of his own face in the dead man, leading to the heartbreaking final lines,