by James Joyce (1882 - 1941)
Language: English
Of cool sweet dew and radiance mild The moon a web of silence weaves In the still garden where a child Gathers the simple salad leaves. A moondew stars her hanging hair And moonlight kisses her young brow And, gathering she sings an air: O bella bionda! Sei come l'onda! Be mine, I pray, a waxen ear To shield me from her childish croon, And mine a shielded heart for her Who gathers simples of the moon.
First published in Poetry, May 1917. The text is preceded by the following epigraph: "O bella bionda!/ Sei come l'onda!" Note for stanza 2, line 2: word 3 is "touches" in some editions.
Composition:
- Set to music by Arthur Edward Drummond Bliss, Sir (1891 - 1975), "Simples", c1931, published 1933, first performed 1932 [ voice and piano ], from The Joyce Book, no. 7
Text Authorship:
- by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "Simples", appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 7, first published 1917
See other settings of this text.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Simples", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Ted Perry
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 80