Thursday, December 29, 2022

Louise Gluck


Louise Glück's picture


The Triumph Of Achilles

     In the story of Patroclus 

no one survives, not even Achilles 
who was nearly a god. 
Patroclus resembled him; they wore 
the same armor. 

Always in these friendships 
one serves the other, one is less than the other: 
the hierarchy 
is always apparant, though the legends 
cannot be trusted-- 
their source is the survivor, 
the one who has been abandoned. 

What were the Greek ships on fire 
compared to this loss? 

In his tent, Achilles 
grieved with his whole being 
and the gods saw 
he was a man already dead, a victim 
of the part that loved, 
the part that was mortal. 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Natasha Trethewey

  Elegy For the Native Guard                                         Now that the salt of their blood       Stiffens the saltier oblivion of...