« Ô madame ! pourquoi ce chagrin qui vous suit ?
Pourquoi pleurer encore,
Vous, femme au cœur charmant, sombre comme la nuit,
Douce comme l’aurore ?
» Qu’importe que la vie, inégale ici-bas
Pour l’homme et pour la femme,
Se dérobe et soit prête à rompre sous vos pas ?
N’avez-vous pas votre âme ?
» Votre âme qui bientôt fuira peut-être ailleurs
Vers les régions pures,
Et vous emportera plus loin que nos douleurs,
Plus loin que nos murmures !
» Soyez comme l’oiseau, posé pour un instant
Sur des rameaux trop frêles,
Qui sent ployer la branche et qui chante pourtant,
Sachant qu’il a des ailes ! »
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Œuvres complètes de Victor Hugo. Les Feuilles d’automne. Les Chants du crépuscule. Les Voix intérieures. Les Rayons et les Ombres, Paris, Ollendorf, 1909, pages 293-294.
Text Authorship:
- by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), no title, written 1834, appears in Les Chants du Crépuscule, in 33. Dans l’église de *** , no. 6 [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 Arthur Goring Thomas (1850 - 1892), "Consolation", published [1883] [ medium voice and piano ], from Mélodies, no. 5, London, Metzler & Co. Limited, also set in English [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by Theophilus Julius Henry Marzials (1850 - 1920) ; composed by Arthur Goring Thomas.
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
- Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Abbie Betinis.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2021-11-29
Line count: 16
Word count: 104
Be like the bird That pausing in her flight Awhile on boughs too slight, Feels them give way Beneath her and sings, Knowing she hath wings.
Text Authorship:
- by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), no title, written 1834, appears in Les Chants du Crépuscule, in 33. Dans l’église de *** , no. 6
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Abbie Betinis (b. 1980), "Be Like the Bird", first performed 2009 [ voices ]
Score: Scribd [external link]
Publisher: Abbie Betinis [external link] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2026-10-13
Line count: 6
Word count: 26