call the roller of big cigars
the muscular one
and bid him whip
in kitchen cups concupiscent curds
let the wenches dawdle in such dress
as they are used to wear
and let the boys
bring flowers in last month's newspapers
let be be finale of seem
the only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream
take from the dresser of deal
lacking the three glass knobs
that sheet on which she embroidered fantails once
and spread it so as to cover her face
if her horny feet protrude
they come to show how cold she is
and dumb
let the lamp affix its beam
the only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream
~ Wallace Stevens
Friday, 16 October 2009
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*Helen Vendler's 'Wallace Stevens: Words Chosen Out of Desire' includes a remarkable prose laying-out of the poem, which discloses it as a reflection on the forced choice between the gross physicality of death and the animal greed of life.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/s_z/stevens/emperor.htm