by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)
In a solitude of the sea
Language: English
I In a solitude of the sea Deep from human vanity, And the Pride of Life that planned her, stilly couches she. II Steel chambers, late the pyres Of her salamandrine fires, Cold currents thrid, and turn to rhythmic tidal lyres. III Over the mirrors meant To glass the opulent The sea-worm crawls -- grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent. IV Jewels in joy designed To ravish the sensuous mind Lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind. V Dim moon-eyed fishes near Gaze at the gilded gear And query: "What does this vaingloriousness down here?". . . VI Well: while was fashioning This creature of cleaving wing, The Immanent Will that stirs and urges everything VII Prepared a sinister mate For her -- so gaily great -- A Shape of Ice, for the time [far]1 and dissociate. VIII And as the smart ship grew In stature, grace, and hue In shadowy silent distance grew the Iceberg too. IX Alien they seemed to be: No mortal eye could see The intimate welding of their later history. X Or sign that they were bent By paths coincident On being anon twin halves of one august event, XI Till the Spinner of the Years Said "Now!" And each one hears, And consummation comes, and jars two hemispheres.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)First published in Fortnightly Review, June, 1912
1 sometimes misprinted as "fat".
Text Authorship:
- by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928), "The Convergence of the Twain", subtitle: "Lines on the loss of the Titanic" [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):
- by Roger S. Keele (b. 1954), "Titanic!", 1999 [ baritone and piano ], from Three British Poems for Baritone and Piano, no. 3, Dowling Music [sung text not yet checked]
- by Seymour J. Shifrin (b. 1926), "The Convergence of the Twain", published 1974 [ mezzo-soprano, flute, piccolo, clarinet, violin, violoncello, contrabass, and piano ], from Satires of Circumstance [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-01-14
Line count: 44
Word count: 201