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Bald heads forgetful of their sins, Old, learned, respectable bald heads Edit and annotate the lines That young men, tossing on their beds, Rhymed out in love's despair To flatter beauty's ignorant ear. They'll cough in the ink to the world's end; Wear out the carpet with their shoes Earning respect; have no strange friend; If they have sinned nobody knows. Lord, what would they say Should their Catullus walk that way?
Authorship
- by William Butler Yeats (1865 - 1939), "The scholars", appears in The Wild Swans at Coole, first published 1919 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- [ None yet in the database ]
Set in a modified version by Joseph Eidson.
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title 1: "Les érudits", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2014-01-10
Line count: 12
Word count: 72
Têtes chauves oublieuses de leurs péchés, Vieilles, éduquées, de respectables têtes chauves Éditent et annotent les lignes Que de jeunes hommes jetés sur leurs lits Rimèrent sur leurs désespoirs d'amour Pour flatter les oreilles ignorantes des beautés . Ils tousseront dans l'encre jusqu'à la fin du monde ; De leurs chaussures useront le tapis En gagnant le respect ; ils n'ont pas d'étrange ami ; S'ils ont péché, personne ne le sait. Seigneur, que diraient-ils Si leur Catulle suivait ce chemin ?
Authorship
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2015 by Pierre Mathé, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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- a text in English by William Butler Yeats (1865 - 1939), "The scholars", appears in The Wild Swans at Coole, first published 1919
This text was added to the website: 2015-12-29
Line count: 12
Word count: 82