All Winged Creatures I Have Loved
All the winged creatures I have loved!
And when, a child, I 'neath the thicket roved,
I from their nests the little birds conveyed—
At first, of reeds I cages for them made,
Where, mid green mosses, I to tame them tried.
Later, I used to leave the windows wide:
They flew not off, or if the woods their choice,
Still they returned whene'er they heard my voice.
A dove and I long lived in friendliness!
Now I the art of taming souls possess.
poem by Victor Hugo
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Indignation
Thou who loved Juvenal, and filed
His style so sharp to scar imperial brows,
And lent the lustre lightening
The gloom in Dante's murky verse that flows,--
Muse Indignation! haste and help
My building up before this roseate realm
And its fruitless victories,
Whence transient shame Right's prophets overwhelm,
So many pillories deserved,
That eyes to come will pry without avail
Upon the wood impenetrant,
And glean no glitter of its tarnished tale.
poem by Victor Hugo
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They Say:
They say:'Be prudent' - and then comes this dithyramb:
Who thinks to strike Nero
'Tiptoes in and does not first cry out an iamb
'Nor make a bugle blow
'Remember Ettenheim - abduction of great fame;
'Do not hurry your task.
'But be like Chereas who in the shadows came
Alone, silent, in mask.
'Those who follow prudence achieve their ev'ry aim
'Walk hidden in the shade…'
I'll leave to those who seek a long life to proclaim
Cowardice virtue made.
poem by Victor Hugo
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Je ne vois pas pourquoi je ferais autre chose
Je ne vois pas pourquoi je ferais autre chose
Que de rêver sous l'arbre où le ramier se pose ;
Les chars passent, j'entends grincer les durs essieux ;
Quand les filles s'en vont laver à la fontaine,
Elles prêtent l'oreille à ma chanson lointaine,
Et moi je reste au fond des bois mystérieux,
Parce que le hallier m'offre des fleurs sans nombre,
Parce qu'il me suffit de voir voler dans l'ombre
Mon chant vers les esprits et l'oiseau vers les cieux.
poem by Victor Hugo
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Je ne vois pas pourquoi je ferais autre chose
Je ne vois pas pourquoi je ferais autre chose
Que de rêver sous l'arbre où le ramier se pose ;
Les chars passent, j'entends grincer les durs essieux ;
Quand les filles s'en vont laver à la fontaine,
Elles prêtent l'oreille à ma chanson lointaine,
Et moi je reste au fond des bois mystérieux,
Parce que le hallier m'offre des fleurs sans nombre,
Parce qu'il me suffit de voir voler dans l'ombre
Mon chant vers les esprits et l'oiseau vers les cieux.
poem by Victor Hugo
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Esmeralda In Prison
[OPERA OF 'ESMERALDA,' ACT IV., 1836.]
Phoebus, is there not this side the grave,
Power to save
Those who're loving? Magic balm
That will restore to me my former calm?
Is there nothing tearful eye
Can e'er dry, or hush the sigh?
I pray Heaven day and night,
As I lay me down in fright,
To retake my life, or give
All again for which I'd live!
Phoebus, hasten from the shining sphere
To me here!
Hither hasten, bring me Death; then Love
May let our spirits rise, ever-linked, above!
poem by Victor Hugo
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An Old-Time Lay
Where your brood seven lie,
Float in calm heavenly,
Life passing evenly,
Waterfowl, waterfowl! often I dream
For a rest
Like your nest,
Skirting the stream.
Shine the sun tearfully
Ere the clouds clear fully,
Still you skim cheerfully,
Swallow, oh! swallow swift! often I sigh
For a home
Where you roam
Nearing the sky!
Guileless of pondering;
Swallow-eyes wandering;
Seeking no fonder ring
Than the rose-garland Love gives thee apart!
[...] Read more
poem by Victor Hugo
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Napoleon the Little
How well I knew this stealthy wolf would howl
When in the eagle talons ta'en in air!
A-glow, I snatched thee from thy prey, fowl!
I held thee, abject conqueror, just where
All see the stigma of a fitting name
As deeply red as deeply black's thy shame!
And though thy matchless impudence may frame
Some mask of seeming courage, spite thy sneear
(And thou assurest sloth and skunk, 'It does not hurt!')
Thou feel'st it burning, in and in; and Fear
Says, 'None forget it till shall hide congenial dirt!'
poem by Victor Hugo
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The Grave and The Rose
The Grave said to the Rose,
"What of the dews of dawn,
Love's flower, what end is theirs?"
"And what of spirits flown,
The souls whereon doth close
The tomb's mouth unawares?"
The Rose said to the Grave.
The Rose said, "In the shade
From the dawn's tears is made
A perfume faint and strange,
Amber and honey sweet."
"And all the spirits fleet
Do suffer a sky-change,
More strangely than the dew,
To God's own angels new,"
The Grave said to the Rose.
poem by Victor Hugo
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En hiver la terre pleure
En hiver la terre pleure ;
Le soleil froid, pâle et doux,
Vient tard, et part de bonne heure,
Ennuyé du rendez-vous.
Leurs idylles sont moroses.
- Soleil ! aimons ! - Essayons.
O terre, où donc sont tes roses ?
- Astre, où donc sont tes rayons ?
Il prend un prétexte, grêle,
Vent, nuage noir ou blanc,
Et dit : - C'est la nuit, ma belle ! -
Et la fait en s'en allant ;
Comme un amant qui retire
Chaque jour son coeur du noeud,
Et, ne sachant plus que dire,
S'en va le plus tôt qu'il peut.
poem by Victor Hugo
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