|  |  |
 |  | |
| ||
| |||||||
| |||||||
|
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
 Contents | May 2001 In This Issue (Contributors) Also by W. S. Merwin: In the Open (2001) Term (1999) Unknown Bird (1999) Any Time (1999) Before the Flood (1998) Shore Birds (1998) Three Poems (1997) Green Fields (1995) Three French Poems (1994) |
The Atlantic Monthly | May 2001
The Sleeper
On one of the last days of the installation in darknessby W. S. Merwin ..... of the unlit procession that would continue its motionless march to the end of the world and beyond it staring at nothing after a ceremony during which mouths were opened repeatedly but no words were shouted sung or spoken the dog was carried into the tomb between two lines of bearers followed by an orchestra holding silent instruments and was lowered slowly into its far corner of that day's light a sleeping dog not a guardian not a living dog not a dog that had lived until then or had ever been born a dog known from some life that would not be known again the sculptor was the first in one file of bearers and the sculptor's hand was the last to touch the figure asleep in clay before they left it to its own sleep and were blindfolded and turned around like planets and they groped along the procession of horses chariots armor to the light they remembered the smells of smoke and cooking then voices dogs barking dogs running among houses the sculptor watched dogs searching and knowing what they were looking for dogs asleep seeing somewhere else while his eye was on them Copyright © 2001 by The Atlantic Monthly Company. All rights reserved. The Atlantic Monthly; May 2001; The Sleeper - 01.05; Volume 287, No. 5; page 50. |
|
|
Home |
Current Issue |
Back Issues |
Forum |
Site Guide |
Feedback |
Subscribe |
Search
| ||