Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE HOUSE OF LIFE: 78. BODY'S BEAUTY, by DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE HOUSE OF LIFE: 78. BODY'S BEAUTY, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Of adam's first wife, lilith, it is told
Last Line: And round his heart one strangling golden hair.
Alternate Author Name(s): Rossetti, Gabriel Charles Dante
Variant Title(s): Lilith
Subject(s): Art & Artists; Beauty; Lilith; Paintings & Painters


OF ADAM's first wife, Lilith, it is told
(The witch he loved before the gift of Eve,)
That, ere the snake's, her sweet tongue could deceive,
And her enchanted hair was the first gold.
And still she sits, young while the earth is old,
And, subtly of herself contemplative,
Draws men to watch the bright web she can weave,
Till heart and body and life are in its hold.

The rose and poppy are her flowers; for where
Is he not found, O Lilith, whom shed scent
And soft-shed kisses and soft sleep shall snare?
Lo! as that youth's eyes burned at thine, so went
Thy spell through him, and left his straight neck bent
And round his heart one strangling golden hair.





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