by William Ernest Henley (1849 - 1903)
I am the Reaper
Language: English
I am the Reaper. All things with heedful hook Silent I gather. Pale roses touched with the spring, Tall corn in summer, Fruits rich with autumn, and frail winter blossoms -- Reaping, still reaping -- All things with heedful hook Timely I gather. I am the Sower. All the unbodied life Runs through my seed-sheet. Atom with atom wed, Each quickening the other, Fall through my hands, ever changing, still changeless. Ceaselessly sowing, Life, incorruptible life, Flows from my seed-sheet. Maker and breaker, I am the ebb and the flood, Here and Hereafter, Sped through the tangle and coil Of infinite nature, Viewless and soundless I fashion all being. Taker and giver, I am the womb and the grave, The Now and the Ever
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Text Authorship:
- by William Ernest Henley (1849 - 1903), no title, appears in A Book of Verses, first published 1888 [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 Jonathan Elkus (b. 1931), "I am the Reaper", published 1922 [ TTBB chorus and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Fritz Bennicke Hart (1874 - 1949), "I am the Reaper", op. 26 (Seven songs) no. 6 (1917) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-12-10
Line count: 27
Word count: 122