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Davie, Donald: Thüesztész (Thyestes in Hungarian)

Portre of Davie, Donald

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Thyestes (English)

Brush of a raven's, not an eagle's wing!
No wonder older classicists could wish
For something more cathartic than this King
Who spooned his baked-meat children from a dish.

With Jung and Frazer, Tylor, Graves and Lang,
The scholiast can wash the blood away.
But what's the use? The savage poets sang
Enormities that happen every day,

No talons raven in a titan's gut
When dreadful fathers of a fortnight's date
Are drowning kittens in a water-butt.
But see, a baby's finger in the plate!



Uploaded byP. T.
Source of the quotationhttp://books.google.hu/books

Thüesztész (Hungarian)

Dehogy sas szárnya: holló szárnya csap!
Klasszika-filológusnak kijár
Mégis valami katartikusabb,
Mint e tálból fiát faló király.

Jung, Frazer, Tylor, Graves és Lang segít
Leöblíteni a vérnyomokat.    
Minek? Olyan mindennapos, amit    
A vad költők zengtek, az iszonyat.  

Nem téphet saskarom titánbelet,      
Miközben kismacskákat fojtogat      
Vízbe kéthetes apa-szörnyeteg.        
S a tálon, nézd, csecsemőujj maradt!



Uploaded byP. T.
Source of the quotationK. Zs.

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