Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SONNETS TO ORPHEUS: FIRST PART, 4, by RAINER MARIA RILKE


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SONNETS TO ORPHEUS: FIRST PART, 4, by             Poem Explanation     Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: O you tender ones, walk now and then
Last Line: Carry them now. But the winds - but the spaces
Subject(s): Love - Marital; Mythology - Classical; Orpheus


O you tender ones, walk now and then
into the breath that blows coldly past,
Upon your cheeks let it tremble and part;
behind you it will tremble together again.


O you blessed ones, you who are whole,
you who seem the beginning of hearts,
bows for the arrows and arrows' targets--
tear-bright, your lips more eternally smile.


Don't be afraid to suffer; return
that heaviness to the earth's own weight;
heavy are the mountains, heavy the seas.


Even the small trees you planted as children
have long since become too heavy; you could not
carry them now. But the winds...But the spaces…




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