Quote:
Originally Posted by John Isbell
Update: thanks also Simon for the reminder that The Pogues are always worth a listen. I see they avoided deciding about the possible Angelus reference, FWIW.
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LOL, John!
I still think that in this poem, "sonne l'heure" right after "Vienne la nuit" strongly implies a special ringing of bells to mark the end of the day, not just the end of an hour like any other.
The curfew bell at the beginning of Gray's Elegy has a similar day-ending concept:
Quote:
The curfew tolls the knell of parting day,
The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea,
The ploughman homeward plods his weary way,
And leaves the world to darkness and to me.
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And guess what! Gray's "curfew bell" actually seems to be an Angelus bell in disguise, too:
Quote:
The Angelus, in all its stages of development, was closely associated with the ringing of a church bell. The bell is still rung in some English country churches and has often been mistaken for, and alleged to be a remnant of, the curfew bell.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelus#Angelus_bell
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Did either Apollinaire or Gray know, or care, about the history of specific religious associations with that special ringing of the bells at the end of the day? Probably not--especially given Apollinaire's lifelong lack of religiosity. But I still think that Wilbur's "bells end the day" translation in the repetend is spot-on.
Anyway, thanks for humoring me while I've yammered on.