The Anathemata
The Lady of the Pool (continued)
. . . the full rant
of the Roarer and naughty tantrums of the lower heavens— nor not all empty fury neither but signifying a jorum:a
cataracted hail
flame along with it
sleet, sheet, fork, fire-balls
and water-spouts.
Captain, storm or hurricane, cap-tin?
you should know!
For certain this Barke
was Tempest-tost.
Shining exhalations
as appeared ’bout bate-time of storm-height.
FIVE on ’ema
terrible lovely
starring the wide steer-board and lade-board arms of the main yard, aflare far out-board of her forward flare,2 at the spumed bowsprit’s lifted end, real lofty beautiful at the mizzen-mast head
and
vapouring extra bright, from the after arm of the mizzen yard, the wind-haled ensign-halliers with Helen’s twin sign
sheening bluish
David Jones notes
2 The noun ‘flare’ is used by sailors of the upward bulge of a ship’s sides or the overhang of a ship’s bows.
Forward is here to be pronounced ‘forward’ not ‘for’ard’.
additional notes
a The five wounds of Christ on the Cross: one through each hand or wrist, one through each foot, and one to the chest.
The mythological and literary references are –even for DJ– unusually densely crowded here. St. Elmo’s fire is a phenomenon that occurs during certain stormy weather conditions. It appears as a glow on the top of tall pointed objects, such as the masts of ships, and is often accompanied by a cracking noise. When stars appeared on the heads of Castor and Pollux during the voyage of the Argonauts, the twins became the special patrons of sailors. From that time, sailors believed that St. Elmo’s fire was actually Castor and Pollux coming to protect them during a storm. Helen was the sister of Castor and Pollux and some scholars believe that Helen was also a tree-goddess.. This is combined with the very old Christian image of the mast and yards of a ship forming a cross, and a passage from the Dream of the Rood in which the poet sees a ‘wondrous tree rising aloft’ with five fair jewels on the crossbeam representing the five wounds of Christ on the Cross.
See also DJ note to the next page.
see also
semantic structures
glossary
a jorum: a large bowl or jug used for serving drinks.
comments
For certain ... : this interjection to Elen’s monologue, in the voice of the captain, is the only occasion on which anyone else gets a word in edgeways.