The Survivor
THE SURVIVOR by ROBERT GRAVES
To die with a forlorn hope, but soon to be raised By hags, the spoilers of the field, to elude their claws And stand once more on a well-swept parade-ground, Scarred and bemedalled, sword upright in fist At head of a new undaunted company:
Is this joy?---to be doubtless alive again, And the others dead? Will your nostrils gladly savour The fragrance, always new, of a first hedge-rose? Will your ears be charmed by the thrush's melody Sung as though he had himself devised it?
And is this joy: after the double suicide (Heart against heart) to be restored entire, To smooth your hair and wash away the life-blood, And presently seek a young and innocent bride, Whispering in the dark: 'for ever and ever'?
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| Author | Graves, Robert (1895-1985) |
|---|---|
| Title | The Survivor |
| Item Date | (1995, 1997, 1999) |
| File type | Text |
| Content | Poem |
| Repository name | ProQuest |
| Repository URL | http://lion.chawyck.co.uk |
| Copyright | The Robert Graves Copyright Trust |
| First line | To die with a forlorn hope, but soon to be raised |
| Publication source | Robert Graves Complete Poems: Volumes 1 - 3 |
| Publication editor | Graves, Beryl and Ward, Dunstan |
| Publishers | Carcanet |
| Publication place | Manchester |
| Digital repository | The First World War Poetry Digital Archive |
| Reference URL | http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/ww1lit/collections/item/3456 |
