Cavafy is the poet celebrated by Lawrence Durrell in his "The Alexandria Quartet." It was those frequent references to him and his poetry that got me interested in him.
DESIRES
Like beautiful bodies of the dead who had not grown old
and they shut them, with tears, in a magnificent mausoleum,,
with roses at the head and jasmine at the feet--
that is how desires look that have passed
without fulfillment; without one of them having achieved
a night of sensual delight, or a moon lit morn.
-- Cavafy --
The Complete Poems of Cavafy
A very sad poem, or so it seems to me. It's also a strange one, primarily because I don't react the same way as Cavafy. For me, an unfulfilled desire simply withers away over time. There is no everlasting body in state nor any long-lasting feeling of regret. Perhaps there's something wrong with me?
interesting poem, in a way, although not really to my taste... i'd tend to believe rather that there's something wrong with Cavafy, than with you... i don't know much about him, but i do know that he's not universally acknowledged as a class A poet... he's a bit too swish for me; but that may indicate there's something wrong with me, instead of you...
ReplyDeleteMudpuddle--I agree. I wouldn't put him up with Frost, Dickinson, Eliot, Hardy, etc. But, I've just started to dip into his poetry, so I may change my mind sometime down the road.
ReplyDeleteAnd, of course, there's always the perennial problem of translations.
I love Cavafy's work and have not paid enough attention to it in spite of that feeling. This is a fine poem but it is understandable that it may not move all readers the same way. I particularly revel in both his classicism and his eroticism.
ReplyDeleteJames--I've only briefly glanced through the collection of his poetry, but the eroticism comes through fairly clearly. This may be why Durrell refers to him frequently in the Alexandria Quartet which Durrell refers to as an exploration of the varieties of love.
DeleteI really like this poem. I also find it very sad. I do not think that I have read Cavafy before.
ReplyDeleteBrian--while I was in grad school, I never heard of him. The only references to Cavafy that I can remember are from Lawrence Durrell and Nikos Kazantzakis, who is Greek.
DeleteThe preoccupation with the carnal and sensual seems to be the key here for the poet; the spiritual and ineffable might be my preferred focus when contemplating the dead, but that’s just my singularity.
ReplyDeleteR.T.--he is comparing his reaction to unfulfilled desires to a body that is not corrupted, even though it is dead. Isn't there a religious tradition regarding bodies that do not corrupt?
DeleteFred, I know too little about religion to answer that question, but I’m intrigued and now in research mode.
DeleteR.T.--I'm interested in what you discover.
DeleteAs I tend towards being a Christian malgre lui who is ignorant of most other religions, I will search in NT Christian thought and apologetics for answers; however, my quest might take a while, especially as I am for the time being obsessed with Emily Dickinson (but she might lead me to some ideas).
DeleteFred, for now, though I expect to find more that it is more credible, there is this from Wikipedia:
Deletehttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incorruptibility
Fred, something more on point and more reliable:
Deletehttp://www.mysticsofthechurch.com/2010/04/saints-that-are-incorruptable.html
And even more:
Deletehttp://www.miraclesofthesaints.com/2010/10/incorruptibles-saints-bodies-that-are.html
I’ll stop now. That should be enough to whet the curiosity of even the most cynical and skeptical. As Hamlet said to Horatio, which I paraphrase, there are many strange possible things undreamed of in our limited philosophies.
R.T.--thanks for the links. That was what I was thinking of.
DeleteVery interesting. As I reflected on my unfulfilled desires that I still think on, the validity of them comes into question based on my subsequent experiences, I do not see them as unchanged or as the young who die beautifully and are always recalled in that state.
ReplyDeleteMel u--yes, that's been my experience frequently. If I do think of one, it's seldom recalled as it was back then. Sometimes, I'm actually happy that it wasn't fulfilled.
DeleteFred, I agree with your last observation, if I had given in to all my inclinations I would have taken a path that would have lead to having there great daughters and wonderful wife.
DeleteMel u--I don't understand your last message.
Delete