Ouroboros

a poetic figure

Abstract

The essay explores the relationship between – the alchemical image – and the poetry of Herberto Helder in Cobra, highlighting the influence of world perception and interartistic philosophical connections. Initially, alchemical studies will be used so as to understand the image of the ouroboros as transmutation, conjunction of opposites, prima materia, and philosopher’s stone, as well as a self-fecundating, autophagic and autopoietic gesture. Subsequently, the essay traces the ouroboros’s presence in Helder’s text, by investigating how this image operates within poetic language and how it extends the significance of the ouroboric figure. The intersection among poetry, image, and alchemy examines how the text organizes linguistic and visual elements of transformative force, by synthesizing such diverse materials. The essay concludes that Helder’s writing proves fertile when associated with alchemical images, creating a new texture of meaning, fostering reflection on the nature of artistic and philosophical creation, emphasizing the perpetual transmutation of matter and the interconnection among various forms of expression.