At the Café Door

Constantine P. Cavafy 1863 (Alexandria) – 1933 (Alexandria)



Something they said beside me
made me look toward the café door,
and I saw that lovely body which seemed
as though Eros in his mastery had fashioned it,
joyfully shaping its well-formed limbs,
molding its tall build,
shaping its face tenderly,
and leaving, with a touch of the fingers,
a particular nuance on the brow, the eyes, the lips.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 27, 2023

18 sec read
71

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCDEFAGH
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 339
Words 62
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 9

Constantine P. Cavafy

Constantine P. Cavafy was a Greek poet who lived in Alexandria and worked as a journalist and civil servant. He published 154 poems; dozens more remained incomplete or in sketch form. His most important poetry was written after his fortieth birthday. more…

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