Crazy Jane Talks With The Bishop

William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)



I met the Bishop on the road
And much said he and I.
'Those breasts are flat and fallen now,
Those veins must soon be dry;
Live in a heavenly mansion,
Not in some foul sty.'

'Fair and foul are near of kin,
And fair needs foul,' I cried.
'My friends are gone, but that's a truth
Nor grave nor bed denied,
Learned in bodily lowliness
And in the heart's pride.

'A woman can be proud and stiff
When on love intent;
But Love has pitched his mansion in
The place of excrement;
For nothing can be sole or whole
That has not been rent.'

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 23, 2023

32 sec read
129

Quick analysis:

Scheme XAXAXA BCXCXC XDBXXD
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 519
Words 110
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. more…

All William Butler Yeats poems | William Butler Yeats Books

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