This poem incorporates one of Housman's favorite themes, that of a naive youth learning fo the world's cruelty.
When I was one-and-twenty
I heard a wise man say,
"give crowns and pounds and guineas
but not your heart away
Give pearls away and rubies
But keep your fancy free."
When I was one-and-twenty
I heard him say again,
"The heart out of the bosom
Was never given in vain;
'Tis paid with sighs a plenty
and sold for endless rue."
And I am two-and-twenty
and oh, 'tis true, 'tis true.
No comments:
Post a Comment