# 446.     Thanks, tinners.   I've now transferred "Before Night Falls" (2000) to DVD after editing-out the commercials.   The Reinaldo Arenas poem has such a potent subtext   I've almost memorised it as it has been on my mind all week.  A child's experience of extreme poverty and the subsequent indelible imagery throughout the film, alongside the intolerance and brutality of the Batista and Castro regimes in his manhood.  Not, perhaps, easy viewing but a most compelling experience and it followed quickly after "The Motorcycle Diaries"  which I only saw a few weeks ago.  Rather expected a buddy-buddy road movie and was really surprised to find the real substance in the underlay.

However, like Capulet remonstrating with Juliet,  "You'll set a cock-a-hoop, you'll be the one", I was delighted by your reminder about Theodor Angelopoulos's  "The Travelling Players" (1975).  I've googled the usual suspects to no avail but have placed a DVD order for Angelopoulos's later "Trilogy -The Weeping Meadow" (2003); a further look at the collapse of ideologies and the trials of history.   A hassling e-mail, too, to a long time friend now writing in his eyrie at Larnaca but a visit by him to Athens must be on the cards; hopefully a VHS if a DVD isn't available.   I wonder whether the BFI have the rights as I recall seeing the film at NFT 2:  another brutal regime with the Colonels amidst the labyrinth of Greek politics.  Real accumulative power in a 4 hour time span.

Now looking over my shoulder before the mods arrive, three square, at the OK Corral.  I hasten to add that I'll start a separate thread, 'Serendipity'? outlining the accidental discoveries in my off-air rummaging and this will include Jean-Luc Goddard.   Recent findings include a Ken Russell SBS on Ralph Vaughan Williams, 'A Symphonic Portrait', circa 1985 and, best of all, a most attractive Ursula VW appears, on-camera, alongside KR (in muted form).   A marked contrast to the frail lady we saw in 'O thou transcendent' some weeks ago.   Both programmes now cheek-by-jowl on DVD.   Also, a fascinating Humphrey Burton "The Quest for Reginald Goodall" (1995)  - a private visit to Valhalla.

Still puzzled about your unattributable quote 'The poor are always with us'.  My hunch is that it was Henry Wilcox in Forster's 'Howards End'.   Talking to his wife's sister, Helen.   "Don't take up a sentimental attitude over the poor.  The poor are poor.  One's sorry for them but there it is.  I grieve for your clerk (Leonard Bast), I really do,  but it is all part of the battle of life."      I can remember dialogue from yonks ago but please don't ask me about a few weeks ago!

To be continued....

Deuteronomy 15:11
'The poor will always be with you in your land, and that is why I command you to be open-handed towards any of your countrymen who are in poverty and need'
Mark 14:7
'For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me.'

The line 'The poor are always with us' is usually a quote from the Mark passage (I think that the King James translation may be closer than the NRSV one I quoted here).

Thinking about William Blake, here is me and the Box Brownie at Bunhill Fields:

Larkin lovers may be interested in the forthcoming Radio 4 proggy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/archivehour/pip/dzb53/

Thanks for that Don B, I've put a reminder on my calendar prog. I can't say I find Larkin himself that lovable but I like his poetry despite myself.

We're looking at Dryden in the small (ie 3 of us) poetry group I belong to tonight. Don't know his work at all but the internet is a great resource for finding poems, though I have got a collection out of the library as well. One of the others, who refuses to have a computer in her house, usually complains when I turn up without a book, just a few sheets of poems I've found online.

Can't say I was over-impressed by Dryden, Don B, somewhat lightweight I thought, though I still haven't read much of his work. Several of the poems I found to read out were actually songs from his dramas. These two we found quite amusing:

Song (Sylvia The Fair, In The Bloom Of Fifteen)
     
Sylvia the fair, in the bloom of fifteen,
Felt an innocent warmth as she lay on the green:
She had heard of a pleasure, and something she guessed
By the towsing and tumbling and touching her breast:
She saw the men eager, but was at a loss
What they meant by their sighing and kissing so close;
By their praying and whining,
And clasping and twining,
And panting and wishing,
And sighing and kissing,
And sighing and kissing so close.

"Ah!" she cried, "ah, for a languishing maid
In a country of Christians to die without aid!
Not a Whig, or a Tory, or Trimmer at least,
Or a Protestant parson, or Catholic priest,
To instruct a young virgin that is at a loss
What they meant by their sighing and kissing so close;
By their praying and whining,
And clasping and twining,
And panting and wishing,
And sighing and kissing,
And sighing and kissing so close."

Cupid in shape of a swain did appear;
He saw the sad wound, and in pity drew near;
Then showed her his arrow, and bid her not fear,
For the pain was no more than a maiden may bear;
When the balm was infused, she was not at a loss
What they meant by their sighing and kissing so close;
By their praying and whining,
And clasping and twining,
And panting and wishing,
And sighing and kissing,
And sighing and kissing so close.

Song from Marriage A-La-Mode
     
Why should a foolish marriage vow,
Which long ago was made,
Oblige us to each other now
When passion is decay'd?
We lov'd, and we lov'd, as long as we could,
Till our love was lov'd out in us both:
But our marriage is dead, when the pleasure is fled:
'Twas pleasure first made it an oath.

If I have pleasures for a friend,
And farther love in store,
What wrong has he whose joys did end,
And who could give no more?
'Tis a madness that he should be jealous of me,
Or that I should bar him of another:
For all we can gain is to give our selves pain,
When neither can hinder the other.

I think I mentioned a bit earlier in this thread that the Library obtained some modern Arabic poetry for me - in translation I hasten to add - and I found them quite boring, as they were too political for my liking. So I thought I'd see what classical Arabic poetry was like...! The Librarians quite enjoyed the task of tracking this down for me I think, anyway they borrowed a book from the British Library which is 'Classical Arabic Poetry', 162 poems from Marukais to Ma'ari by Charles Greville Tuetey, who did the translations and wrote 85 pages of text. The poems date from 6th-9th centuries and the first group are pre-Islamic. I only read the opening pages of the text (on my CCTV) and a score or so of the poems, as they tend to have somewhat repetitive themes. Fortunately (!) they are not long, usually from about 12-40 lines. The translation uses modern English which makes it easy to read and it seems obvious that the words are true to the original, but the word 'joggle' does not seem to resonate with the idea of classical Arabic!! I googled the author, but not much there, so then put 'Classical Arabic poetry ' into wikipedia = interesting article.

I think that's the end of my little excursion into that branch of poetry! Actually, I think I quite liked the ones I read. I had heard that the language is apparently superb for poetry and in wikipedia it mentions this.

Okay, so now I think I'll try a bit of Pope. Could someone please suggest a couple? If they are already in this thread, an indication of which page would be much appreciated.

(While I've been typing this, I've been listening to R3, 'Divertimento' by Bartok. Nice.)