Today I present a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950), an American poet and playwright. She is known for combining traditional forms (especially the sonnet) with modernist attitudes and for frankly portraying feminist ideas. However, the poem I have chosen does not deal with modernism or feminism; instead it is a simple, romantic account of how one night was spent. It is called “Recuerdo,” which is Spanish for “memory.”
“Recuerdo”
We were very tired, we were very merry—
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry.
It was bare and bright, and smelled like a stable—
But we looked into a fire, we leaned across a table,
We lay on a hill-top underneath the moon;
And the whistles kept blowing, and the dawn came soon.
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry;
And you ate an apple, and I ate a pear,
From a dozen of each we had bought somewhere;
And the sky went wan, and the wind came cold,
And the sun rose dripping, a bucketful of gold.
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry.
We hailed, “Good morrow, mother!” to a shawl-covered head,
And bought a morning paper, which neither of us read;
And she wept, “God bless you!” for the apples and pears,
And we gave her all our money but our subway fares.
Recording
I was surprised and pleased to find this recording of Edna St. Vincent Millay reading “Recuerdo. Her voice is not what I expected — sometimes it reminds me of Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady!
Publication
“Recuerdo” was first published in Poetry: A Magazine of Verse in May, 1919.
“Recuerdo” was then published in Millay’s second book of poetry, A Few Figs from Thistles: Poems and Sonnets, in 1922.
Music
In my research I came across the fact that Jewish composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco set “Recuerdo” to music in 1941. As far as I can tell, the original sheet music is held by Vassar College Libraries in the Edna St. Vincent Millay Papers. You can buy a copy through Amazon. If anyone knows more about this, please leave a comment!
Much more recently Australian composer Carmel Dean set “Recuerdo” to music as part of “A Girl Called Vincent,” a musical about Edna St. Vincent Millay. You can listen to the male/female duet here.
Conclusion
If you liked “Recuerdo,” I think you will also enjoy “Afternoon on a Hill” and “God’s World.” I find “Dirge Without Music” achingly beautiful, as it shows that death is not what we were created for. Feel free to share your favourite Millay poems in the comments. I would love to hear.
Sources
Poetry Foundation
“Song Spotlight: Recuerdo” by Maddie Gaw
“Workshop of Carmel Dean’s A Girl Called Vincent to Feature Gerard Canonico, Van Hughes and More” by Adam Hetrick
The recording is so interesting! She sounds quite ominous at times.
I love “Recuerdo,” and I always remember Dr. Brooks in poetry class reading it out loud to us and then saying that he thinks he likes the poem so much because it’s not clear whether the two are friends or lovers, but it doesn’t matter. Oh, I so agree about Dirge Without Music – it’s heartbreaking.
I loved Recuerdo, which I have never read before! Very moving.
So glad you both enjoyed the post!