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Classic and Contemporary Poetry
THE GREAT CAROUSAL, by LOUIS UNTERMEYER Poet Analysis Poet's Biography First Line: Oh, do not think me dead when I Last Line: The rich eternity of death. Alternate Author Name(s): Lewis, Michael Subject(s): Happiness; Immortality; Laughter; Soul; Joy; Delight | |||
OH, do not think me dead when I Beneath a bit of earth shall lie; Think not that aught can ever kill My arrogant and stubborn will. My buoyant strength, my eager soul, My stern desire shall keep me whole And lift me from the drowsy deep... I shall not even yield to Sleep. For Death can never take from me My warm, insatiate energy; He shall not dare to touch one part Of the gay challenge of my heart. And I shall laugh at him, and lie Happy beneath a laughing sky; For I have fought too joyously To let the conqueror conquer me I know that, after strengthening strife, Death cannot quench my love of life; Rob me of my dear self, my ears Of music or my eyes of tears... No, Death shall come in friendlier guise; The cloths of darkness from my eyes He shall roll back, and lo, the sea Of Silence shall not cover me. He shall make soft my final bed, Stand, like a servant, at my head; And, thrilled with all that Death may give, I shall lie down to restand live... And I shall know within the earth A softer but a deeper mirth. The wind shall never troll a song But I shall hear it borne along, And echoed long before he passes By all the little unborn grasses. I shall be clasped by roots and rains, Feeding and fed by living grains; There shall not be a single flower Above my head but bears my power, And every butterfly or bee That tastes the flower shall drink of me. Ah, we shall share a lip to lip Carousal and companionship! The storm, like some great blustering lout, Shall play his games with me and shout His joy to all the country-side. Autumn, sun-tanned and April-eyed, Shall scamper by and send his hosts Of leaves, like brown and merry ghosts, To frolic over me; and stones Shall feel the dancing in their bones. And red-cheeked Winter too shall be A jovial bed-fellow for me, Setting the startled hours ringing With boisterous tales and lusty singing. And, like a mother that has smiled For years on every tired child, Summer shall hold me in her lap... And when the root stirs and the sap Climbs anxiously beyond the boughs, And all the friendly worms carouse, Then, oh, how proudly, we shall sing Bravuras for the feet of Spring! And I shall lie forever there Like some great king, and watch the fair Young Spring dance on for me, and know That love and rosy valleys glow Where'er her blithe feet touch the earth. And headlong joy and reckless mirth Seeing her footsteps shall pursue. Oh, I shall watch her smile and strew Laughter and life with either hand; And every quiver of the land, Shall pierce me, while a joyful wave Beats in upon my radiant grave. Aye, like a king in deathless state I shall be throned, and contemplate The dying of the years, the vast Vague panorama of the past, The march of centuries, the surge Of ages. ... but the deathless urge Shall stir me always, and my will Shall laugh to keep me living still; Thrilling with every call and cry Too much in love with life to die. Content to touch the earth, to hear The whisper of each waiting year, To help the stars go proudly by, To speed the timid grass; and lie, Sharing, with every movement's breath, The rich eternity of Death. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE STUDY OF HAPPINESS by KENNETH KOCH SO MUCH HAPPINESS by NAOMI SHIHAB NYE CROWD CONDITIONS by JOHN ASHBERY I WILL NOT BE CLAIMED by MARVIN BELL THE BOOK OF THE DEAD MAN (#21): 1. ABOUT THE DEAD MAN'S HAPPINESS by MARVIN BELL A BIRTHDAY by LOUIS UNTERMEYER A VOICE FROM THE SWEAT-SHOPS (A HYMN WITH RESPONSES) by LOUIS UNTERMEYER |
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