Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE HOUSE OF LIFE: 71. THE CHOICE (1), by DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE HOUSE OF LIFE: 71. THE CHOICE (1), by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Eat thou and drink; to-morrow thou shalt die
Last Line: And round their narrow lips the mould falls close.
Alternate Author Name(s): Rossetti, Gabriel Charles Dante
Subject(s): Bible; Religion; Theology


EAT thou and drink; to-morrow thou shalt die.
Surely the earth, that's wise being very old,
Needs not our help. Then loose me, love, and hold
Thy sultry hair up from my face; that I
May pour for thee this golden wine, brim-high,
Till round the glass thy fingers glow like gold.
We'll drown all hours: thy song, while hours are toll'd,
Shall leap, as fountains veil the changing sky.

Now kiss, and think that there are really those,
My own high-bosomed beauty, who increase
Vain gold, vain lore, and yet might choose our way!
Through many years they toil; then on a day
They die not,--for their life was death,--but cease;
And round their narrow lips the mould falls close.





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