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February 15, 2005

Because I love you, another poem by Wallace Stevens

The Emperor of Ice-Cream
by Wallace Stevens


Call the roller of big cigars,
The muscular one, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups concupiscent curds.
Let the wenches dawdle in such dress
As they are used to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.
Let be be finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Take from the dresser of deal,
Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet
On which she embroidered fantails once
And spread it so as to cover her face.
If her horny feet protrude, they come
To show how cold she is, and dumb.
Let the lamp affix its beam.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Posted by Dan at February 15, 2005 10:14 PM

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Comments

That poem figures heavily into Stephen King's novel "Insomnia" and the Dark Tower series, plus quotes from it were scattered here and there in Kingdom Hospital..

It's very eerie in those contexts..

Posted by: Barry at February 16, 2005 01:50 PM

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