Phlebas the Phoenician, a fortnight dead
Language: English
Available translation(s): ITA
Phlebas the Phoenician, a fortnight dead,
Forgot the cry of gulls, and the deep seas swell
And the profit and loss.
A current under sea
Picked his bones in whispers. As he rose and fell
He passed the stages of his age and youth
Entering the whirlpool.
Gentile or Jew
O you who turn the wheel and look to windward,
Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall as you.
About the headline (FAQ)
First published in
Criterion, October 1922
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Flebas il fenicio", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-26
Line count: 10
Word count: 70
Flebas il fenicio
Language: Italian (Italiano) after the English
Flebas il fenicio, morto da due settimane,
ha dimenticato il grido dei gabbiani, e i flutti profondi del mare
e il profitto e la perdita.
Una corrente sottomarina
gli ha spolpato le ossa in un sussurro. Affiorando e affondando
ha attraversato gli stadi della maturità e della giovinezza
trascinato nel gorgo.
Gentile o giudeo
Tu che ruoti il timone e scruti sopravvento,
considera Flebas, che un tempo fu bello e alto come te.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to Italian (Italiano) copyright © 2008 by Ferdinando Albeggiani, (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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Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2008-09-06
Line count: 10
Word count: 73