Casida of the dark doves
Through the laurel branches
I saw two doves of darkness.
The one it was the sun,
the other one was lunar.
I said: ‘Little neighbours
where is my tombstone?’
‘In my tail-feathers,’ the sun said.
‘In my throat,’ said the lunar.
And I who was out walking
with the earth wrapped round me,
saw two eagles made of white snow,
and a girl who was naked.
And the one was the other,
and the girl, she was neither.
I said: ‘Little eagles,
where is my tombstone?’
‘In my tail-feathers,’ the sun said.
‘In my throat,’ said the lunar.
Through the branches of laurel,
I saw two doves, both naked.
And the one was the other,
and the two of them were neither.
Biography:
Federico García Lorca (1898-1936) was a part of avant-garde artists collectively known as the “Generation of’ 27”. The group had a focus on surrealism (combination of objects and images in a strange way) that went on to greatly influence Lorca’s writing. Lorca published numerous volumes of poetry in his career beginning with Impresiones y paisajes in 1918. His work often involved themes of Spanish folklore, gypsy culture, and cante jondos or deep songs that explored themes of romantic love and tragedy.
Questions:
- What is the effect of negatives within the poem?
- How does Lorca use nature within his poem? And what is the effect of the repetition?
- How is death presented within the poem?
Other Spanish Literature:
- Sea of Eden by Andres Ibanez
- A Stab in the Dark by Facundo Bernal
- The Four Symbols by Giacometti
- A Heart So White by Javier Marias
- Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
Now why not discover Casida of the dark doves in its original language
Casida de las palomas oscuras
Por las ramas del laurel
vi dos palomas oscuras.
La una era el sol,
la otra la luna.
«Vecinita», les dije,
«¿dónde está mi sepultura?»
«En mi cola», dijo el sol.
«En mi garganta», dijo la luna.
Y yo que estaba caminando
con la tierra por la cintura
vi dos águilas de nieve
y una muchacha desnuda.
La una era la otra
y la muchacha era ninguna.
«Aguilitas», les dije,
«¿dónde está mi sepultura?»
«En mi cola», dijo el sol.
«En mi garganta», dijo la luna.
Por las ramas del laurel
vi dos palomas desnudas.
La una era la otra
y las dos eran ninguna.
With credit to:
Poem found here and was translated by A. S. Kline: http://spanishpoems.blogspot.com/2005/07/federico-garca-lorca-casida-de-las.html