"The way / to certainty is charted now, / the sensitive ears alive to sound, / antennae poised for touch, and in the head / all tissue quivering like violin strings."
— Edwin Rolfe (1909-1954)
Author
Work Title
Date
1936
Metaphor
"The way / to certainty is charted now, / the sensitive ears alive to sound, / antennae poised for touch, and in the head / all tissue quivering like violin strings."
Metaphor in Context
Lids closed, the eyes are watchful; the brain
carefully stalks the thought like a tiger
following the accurately-scented prey
through tangled jungle foliage.
The way
to certainty is charted now,
the sensitive ears alive to sound,
antennae poised for touch, and in the head
all tissue quivering like violin strings.
Before the hour demands surrender,
before the body tires, I see all friends
wonderfully perfect, and the earth changed
to match the works, desires of my days;
loving all men and mankind, and the world
unblemished as her rising-falling breast.
carefully stalks the thought like a tiger
following the accurately-scented prey
through tangled jungle foliage.
The way
to certainty is charted now,
the sensitive ears alive to sound,
antennae poised for touch, and in the head
all tissue quivering like violin strings.
Before the hour demands surrender,
before the body tires, I see all friends
wonderfully perfect, and the earth changed
to match the works, desires of my days;
loving all men and mankind, and the world
unblemished as her rising-falling breast.
Categories
Provenance
Reading
Citation
Edwin Rolfe, "Night-World," Poetry 48:2 (May, 1936): pp. 62-3. <Link to poetryfoundation.org>
Date of Entry
07/17/2023
