Le Cygne

poem by Baudelaire

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June 17, 2026

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"Le Cygne" (The Swan) is a poem by Charles Baudelaire, featured in his seminal collection Les Fleurs du mal (The Flowers of Evil). Published in 1861, this poem is part of the \"Tableaux parisiens\" section, which depicts a 24-hour cycle in the life of Paris.12

In \"Le Cygne,\" Baudelaire uses the image of a swan stranded and disoriented near the Louvre to symbolize a profound existential condition of loss and exile. The poem explores themes of memory, suffering, and the search for meaning in an urban landscape, reflecting Baudelaire's broader concerns with the complexities of modern life and the human predicament. It is considered one of Baudelaire's greatest poems and a significant example of his innovative approach to poetry.21

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Charles Baudelaire
Les Fleurs du mal of Charles Baudelaire
…greatest poems, most notably “Le Cygne,” where the memory of a swan stranded in total dereliction near the Louvre becomes a symbol of an existential condition of loss and exile transcending time and space. Having gone through the city forever meeting himself, the traveler turns, in the much shorter…
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…greatest poems, most notably “Le Cygne,” where the memory of a swan stranded in total dereliction near the Louvre becomes a symbol of an existential condition of loss and exile transcending time and space. Having gone through the city forever meeting himself, the traveler turns, in the much shorter…
Read More