Dylan Thomas - Lie Still, Sleep Becalmed

[kementari2.livejournal.com]

Lie Still, Sleep Becalmed
by Dylan Thomas


Lie still, sleep becalmed, sufferer with the wound
In the throat, burning and turning. All night afloat
On the silent sea we have heard the sound
That came from the wound wrapped in the salt sheet.

Under the mile off moon we trembled listening
To the sea sound flowing like blood from the loud wound
And when the salt sheet broke in a storm of singing
The voices of all the drowned swam on the wind.

Open a pathway through the slow sad sail,
Throw wide to the wind the gates of the wandering boat
For my voyage to begin to the end of my wound,
We heard the sea sound sing, we saw the salt sheet tell.
Lie still, sleep becalmed, hide the mouth in the throat,
Or we shall obey, and ride with you through the drowned.

Comments

[menis-by-memory.livejournal.com]

Hooray for Dylan Thomas.

[tealight-rookie.livejournal.com]

Hooray indeed. I always forget how much I love his poetry. Thank you for reminding me.

[mspixieears.livejournal.com]

This seems to flow so beautifully, and then the last word just...I don't know, am I not pronouncing it correctly? It seems so out of place with the rest of the end-lines. (unless it's "drow-ned")

[kementari2.livejournal.com]

It's one syllable. He's got this thing going where he uses similarly spelled, but differently pronounced, words:
wound/sound/wound in the first stanza;
wound/drowned in the second stanza;
wound/sound/drowned in the third stanza.

I'm guessing he's playing off the -nd sound at the end of the word, just like he uses -ing, s-, and w-. The alliteration and consonant themes remind me of Old English poetry.

[mspixieears.livejournal.com]

Ahh, okay, thanks so much for explaining that to me! It was really bothering me that I couldn't get the fit of the rhythm. :)

[wetweekend.livejournal.com]

I LOVE Dylan Thomas! I just stuck this poem on my wall (: