by William Butler Yeats (1865 - 1939)
Crazy Jane talks with the Bishop
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Language: English
I met the Bishop on the road And much said he and I. "Those breasts are flat and fallen now, Those veins must soon be dry; Live in a heavenly mansion, Not in some foul sty." "Fair and foul are near of kin, And fair needs foul," I cried. "My friends are gone, but that's a truth Nor grave nor bed denied, Learned in bodily lowliness And in the heart's pride. "A woman can be proud and stiff When on love intent; But Love has pitched his mansion in The place of excrement; For nothing can be sole or whole That has not been rent."
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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor]
Text Authorship:
- by William Butler Yeats (1865 - 1939), "Crazy Jane talks with the Bishop", appears in The Winding Stair, first published 1929 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-03
Line count: 18
Word count: 106