Lady, weeping at the crossroads
Would you meet your love
In the twilight with his greyhounds,
And the hawk on his glove?
Bribe the birds then on the branches
Bribe them to be dumb,
Stare the hot sun out of heaven
That the night may come.
Starless are the nights of travel,
Bleak the winter wind;
Run with terror all before you
And regret behind.
Run until you hear the ocean's
Everlasting cry;
Deep though it may be and bitter
You must drink it dry.
Wear out patience in the lowest
Dungeons of the sea,
Searching through the stranded shipwrecks
For the golden key.
Push on to the world's end, pay the
Dread guard with a kiss;
Cross the rotten bridge that totters
Over the abyss.
There stands the deserted castle
Ready to explore;
Enter, climb the marble staircase
Open the locked door.
Cross the silent ballroom,
Doubt and danger past;
Blow the cobwebs from the mirror
See yourself at last.
Put your hand behind the wainscot,
You have done your part;
Find the penknife there and plunge it
Into your false heart.
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Comments
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In my opinion...
It's the journey of love and life, to find truth.
The crossroads is obviously the point of decision making, which is inevitable in life. The decision is about the journey, it could be whether to take it or which road during it would be the best to take.
The image of the hawk on his glove is great, it presents the lack of freedom (for in the time of that image, the hawk would literally be bound to the glove) but it also represents the idea of commitment. Also, it raises the question, would you allow yourself to be bound to someone?
The use of "Starless" is yet another reference to the journey, and that a lot of the time the journey is unknown. There are no stars, therefore there is no direction or navigation. Think of what the stars are used for, a giant, natural compass.
I think that the "Deep though it may be and bitter/You must drink it dry" lines are an indication that no matter what, you must overcome certain things and move on.
To me, it's obvious what "the golden key" is - the ultimate answer. Further on, when the lady is at the "deserted castle", it's this key that allows her inside. The castle, is the heart. Yes, it is deserted, but only for the start. It's saying that love has to be built up, it isn't magically there but rather it has to be created. And the castle is the end of the journey, she's found what she was looking for in a sense. Be it her own heart or someone else's, it doesn't really matter.
Her plunging the penknife in her heart, her "false heart" at that, says that she is not actually prepared to be in love with total commitment. That's why she's taken the journey, to find those truths. Truth is a sense of commitment through good and bad, and being prepared to sacrifice for it. She's not ready for that. However, the interesting part that caught my eye is that in the end, she is not prepared to love with total commitment and so in a sense her journey is not successful, yet in the other sense it was because she has found that honesty about herself.
It's a brilliant piece, so many things to think about. -
I absolutely love W. H. Auden
From guest Justine LaBonte (15) (contact)
This is my all time favorite poem. And Auden os my all time favorite poet. But to me he was more than a poet. He is my sub-sided conscious. -
Missing word
From guest jcarr (contact)
"Cross the silent ballroom" should read "Cross the silent empty ballroom". -
9# Starless are the night of travel,
Should it be:
9# Starless are the nights of travel,
Apart from that, can't really say I've understood the poem except that's the woman's given impossible tasks to do if she wants to meet an idealized,melodramatic lover in the twilight. At the end of the tasks, she must know herself and then her life's sole aim is fulfilled so she dies. Perhaps she is false for lusting after the idealized lover...neways i hate when i can't understand the meaning. -
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typo corrected. Thank you for taking the time to point it out for us.
Regards,
rufina
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This is an interesting poem. "Lady", as a term only, can be construed as in a proper address or as a satrical remark. Her heart is false (line 36) and she is ordered to plunge a penknife into it. Wow. Perhaps she was messing with a married man, hence to late night meeting. If I want to be catty--perhaps the man she was trying to seduce was Auden's lover, lol. (I know that is a stretch of a remark!) Most likely, Auden was having sheer fun composing this poem and he wanted the falseness of the lady to be exposed only after she attempted to fulfil many silly tasks. The poem also shows the foolishness of people in general that chase after things or people they have no business chasing.
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