A Memory of the Players in a Mirror at Midnight

James Joyce 1882 (Rathgar) – 1941 (Zürich)



They mouth love's language. Gnash
The thirteen teeth
Your lean jaws grin with. Lash
Your itch and quailing, nude greed of the flesh.
Love's breath in you is stale, worded or sung,
As sour as cat's breath,
Harsh of tongue.

This grey that stares
Lies not, stark skin and bone.
Leave greasy lips their kissing. None
Will choose her what you see to mouth upon.
Dire hunger holds his hour.
Pluck forth your heart, saltblood, a fruit of tears.
Pluck and devour!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

26 sec read
390

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXAXBXB CXXXDCD
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 450
Words 84
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 7, 7

James Joyce

ames Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century.  more…

All James Joyce poems | James Joyce Books

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