To Sainte-Beuve, Poem by Alfred De Musset

Poem by Alfred De Musset Collection New PoemsPeriod 19th century

Friend, you said it well: in us, as long as we are,
There often exists a certain flower
That goes away in life and sheds its leaves from the heart.
“There exists, in a word, in three quarters of men,
A poet dead young whom the man survives.”
You said it well, friend, but you said it too well.

You did not notice, as you traced your thought,
That your pen was making it a harmonious verse,
And that you were blaspheming in the language of the gods.
Read yourself again, I give you back to your offended Muse;
And remember that in us there often exists
A sleeping poet always young and alive.

Alfred De Musset

Translation generated by Poésies 123 with assistance from the deepseek-chat artificial-intelligence model.

Text published on Poésies 123: https://www.poesies123.com/en/poem-to-saintebeuve-alfred-de-musset/