Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Volta project, day 23

Sonnet 23:
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XXIII

  As an unperfect actor on the stage,
  Who with his fear is put beside his part,
  Or some fierce thing replete with too much rage,
  Whose strength's abundance weakens his own heart;
  So I, for fear of trust, forget to say
  The perfect ceremony of love's rite,
  And in mine own love's strength seem to decay,
  O'ercharg'd with burthen of mine own love's might.
  O! let my looks be then the eloquence
  And dumb presagers of my speaking breast,
  Who plead for love, and look for recompense,
  More than that tongue that more hath more express'd.
    O! learn to read what silent love hath writ:
    To hear with eyes belongs to love's fine wit.
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Okay, the volta is the then in line 9, this one moves straight forward everywhere else. 

The (twentieth century) Urdu poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz does a roughly similar idea beautifully in the penultimate couplet (from 4:25 to 5:35) sung by Akhtarii Baa’ii Faizaabaadii in the recording http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pld4snEPxpY :

dil se to har mu’aamilah kar ke chale the saaf ham
kahne meN un ke saamne baat badal badal ga’ii

More tomorrow—

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