Mastery (Teasdale, set by John Woods Duke) (The LiederNet Archive: Texts and Translations to Lieder, mélodies, canzoni, and other classical vocal music)

by Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933)

Mastery

Language: English

Available translation(s): FRE

I would not have a god come in
To shield me suddenly from sin,
And set my house of life to rights;
Nor angels with bright burning wings
Ordering my earthly thoughts and things;
Rather my own frail guttering lights
Wind blown and nearly beaten out;
Rather the terror of the nights
And long, sick groping after doubt;
Rather be lost than let my soul
Slip vaguely from my own control --
Of my own spirit let me be
In sole though feeble mastery.

Confirmed with Sara Teasdale, Love Songs, New York, The Macmillan Company, 1917, page 48.

Authorship

by Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933), "Mastery", appears in Love Songs, in 2. Interlude: Songs out of Sorrow, no. 2, first published 1917 [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 John Woods Duke (1899 - 1984), "Mastery", 1967 [mezzo-soprano and piano], from Songs Out of Sorrow, Six Songs for Mezzo-soprano, no. 2, Southern/Texas [ sung text not yet checked against a primary source]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

Text added to the website: 2011-02-13 00:00:00
Last modified: 2015-10-13 15:54:38
Line count: 13
Word count: 83