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Goldbrown upon the sated flood The rockvine clusters lift and sway. Vast wings above the lambent waters brood Of sullen day. A waste of waters ruthlessly Sways and uplifts its weedy mane Where brooding day stares down upon the sea In dull disdain. Uplift and sway, O golden vine, Your clustered fruits to love's full flood, Lambent and vast and ruthless as is thine Incertitude!
About the headline (FAQ)
First published in Poetry, May 1917Authorship:
- by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "Flood", written 1915, appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 8 [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 Lorne M. Betts (b. 1918), "Goldbrown upon the sated flood", 1952 [ voice and piano ], from Five Songs (1952) [sung text not yet checked]
- by Herbert Norman Howells (1892 - 1983), "Flood", c1931, published 1933, first performed 1932 [ voice and piano ], from The Joyce Book, no. 8 [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Inondation", 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 text: Barbara Miller
This text was added to the website: 2005-01-13
Line count: 12
Word count: 65
D'or brun au-dessus du flot rassasié Les grappes de la vigne se lèvent et se balancent. De vastes ailes couvent au-dessus des eaux chatoyantes D'un jour maussade. Un gâchis d'eaux sans pitié Balance et lève sa crinière de mauvaises herbes Où un jour pesant baisse les yeux sur la mer En un dédain las. Soulève et balance, ô vigne dorée, Tes fruits en grappe au flot plein de l'amour, Miroitant et vaste et sans pitié comme ton Incertitude !
Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2009 by Guy Laffaille, (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:
- a text in English by James Joyce (1882 - 1941), "Flood", written 1915, appears in Pomes Penyeach, no. 8
This text was added to the website: 2009-11-09
Line count: 12
Word count: 79