{"id":184388,"date":"2025-02-02T05:59:39","date_gmt":"2025-02-02T11:59:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/?p=184388"},"modified":"2025-02-16T10:52:56","modified_gmt":"2025-02-16T16:52:56","slug":"crimson-clash-rejoicing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/crimson-clash-rejoicing\/","title":{"rendered":"Crimson clash rejoicing"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s February 2, when bloggers — a few, anyway — post a favorite poem, if they remember to. Here’s a sestina<\/a> by Ezra Pound.<\/p>\n

Sestina: Altaforte<\/h3>\n

Loquitur: En Bertrans de Born.
\n Dante Alighieri put this man in hell for that he was a
\n stirrer-up of strife.
\n Eccovi!
\n Judge ye!
\n Have I dug him up again?
\nThe scene in at his castle, Altaforte. “Papiols” is his jongleur.
\n“The Leopard,” the device of Richard (C\u00faur de Lion).<\/p>\n

I<\/p>\n

Damn it all! all this our South stinks peace.
\nYou whoreson dog, Papiols, come! Let’s to music!
\nI have no life save when the swords clash.
\nBut ah! when I see the standards gold, vair, purple, opposing
\nAnd the broad fields beneath them turn crimson,
\nThen howl I my heart nigh mad with rejoicing.<\/p>\n

II<\/p>\n

In hot summer have I great rejoicing
\nWhen the tempests kill the earth’s foul peace,
\nAnd the lightnings from black heav’n flash crimson,
\nAnd the fierce thunders roar me their music
\nAnd the winds shriek through the clouds mad, opposing,
\nAnd through all the riven skies God’s swords clash.<\/p>\n

III<\/p>\n

Hell grant soon we hear again the swords clash!
\nAnd the shrill neighs of destriers in battle rejoicing,
\nSpiked breast to spiked breast opposing!
\nBetter one hour’s stour than a year’s peace
\nWith fat boards, bawds, wine and frail music!
\nBah! there’s no wine like the blood’s crimson!<\/p>\n

IV<\/p>\n

And I love to see the sun rise blood-crimson.
\nAnd I watch his spears through the dark clash
\nAnd it fills all my heart with rejoicing
\nAnd pries wide my mouth with fast music
\nWhen I see him so scorn and defy peace,
\nHis lone might ‘gainst all darkness opposing.<\/p>\n

V<\/p>\n

The man who fears war and squats opposing
\nMy words for stour, hath no blood of crimson
\nBut is fit only to rot in womanish peace
\nFar from where worth’s won and the swords clash
\nFor the death of such sluts I go rejoicing;
\nYea, I fill all the air with my music.<\/p>\n

VI<\/p>\n

Papiols, Papiols, to the music!
\nThere’s no sound like to swords swords opposing,
\nNo cry like the battle’s rejoicing
\nWhen our elbows and swords drip the crimson
\nAnd our charges ‘gainst “The Leopard’s” rush clash.
\nMay God damn for ever all who cry “Peace!”<\/p>\n

VII<\/p>\n

And let the music of the swords make them crimson!
\nHell grant soon we hear again the swords clash!
\nHell blot black for always the thought “Peace!”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Left to right: Virgil, Dante, Bertie’s head, Bertie.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s February 2, when bloggers — a few, anyway — post a favorite poem, if they remember to. Here’s a sestina by Ezra Pound. Sestina: Altaforte Loquitur: En Bertrans de Born. Dante Alighieri put this man in hell for that he was a stirrer-up of strife. Eccovi! Judge ye! Have I dug him up again? … Continue reading “Crimson clash rejoicing”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-184388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-words"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4xam3-LY0","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184388"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":184566,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184388\/revisions\/184566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shuffly.net\/zoop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}