Reflections on the Proverbs of William Blake, VIII

Bangkok Byron

By : Bangkok Byron
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The final part of this series of reflections on William Blake’s Proverbs of Hell (1793). The full text of Blake’s proverbs can be found at http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19361

VIII

Enough! or Too much! – Concluding reflections

Proverbs to live by – or keep me in thrall?
Words that in profundity excel
Anything that came from sage’s cell? –
Or dangerous words to bring about my fall? –

Binging on drink – and maybe drugs as well,
Feeling no pity for the girls I maul
(Unless braces or pigtails cast their spell)
And ditching them when their attractions pall.

For what Blake really meant no-one can tell,
His enigmatic title says it all:
‘Proverbs of Hell’.

© Bangkok Byron, 2009. All rights reserved by the author.