ABSTRACT
Literature itself offers metaphors that show us the way meaning comes into being. In my article mentioned earlier, the first example I gave is from Baudelaire’s poem “Recueillement” ‘Contemplation.’ In describing the evening, the poet draws the attention of his sorrow to the past years and says “Vois” ‘See’: “Surgir du fond des eaux le Regret souriant” ‘The smiling Regret arise from the depths of the water.’ In spite of the evening sadness, the dynamics of the smiling Regret is under the sign of rebirth. The Regret is purified by the immersion in the water and gains something of the suggested image of the sunset’s reflection in the water. That is because in the next line the sorrow is asked to see “Le soleil moribond s’endormir sous une arche” ‘The dying sun fall asleep under an arch.’ Elsewhere, Baudelaire explains what some poetic minds may see in the setting sun:
