Nocturne

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Nocturne

by Thomas MacGreevy

Original Source

Diplomatic editions of MacGreevy's poetry were created from

Collected Poems of Thomas MacGreevy: An Annotated Edition
, edited by Susan Schreibman (Anna Livia Press and The Catholic University of America Press, 1991). Images of MacGreevy's published poems were taken from MacGreevy's own copy of
Poems
(Heinemann, 1934). Manuscript copies are from MacGreevy's papers at Trinity College, Dublin (individual manuscript numbers appear in the witness list below).

Witness List

  • Witness t7989-1-2: 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi, 1918' (TCD 7878/1/2)
  • Witness t7989-1-3: 'Nocturne of St. Eloi, 1918' (TCD MS 7989/1/3)
  • Witness t7989-1-1: 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi' (TCD MS 79891/1)
  • Witness nocturne_poems: published in Poems as 'Nocturne'

Textual Notes

critical: There are three TS versions of this poem entitled 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi, 1918'. It was nocturne_poemslished as 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi, 1929' in The Irish Statesman, II:4 (28 September 1929) 69, under the pseudonym L. Saint Senan (See 'Saint Senan's Well'). 'Nocturne' was written in late 1928 or early 1929. To the editor's knowledge, it has not been reprinted.
biographical: During World War I, MacGreevy served for twenty-two months as a second lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery, spending most of that time in the front line of the Somme (after the war he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant). In France he was wounded twice, the second time (September 1918) more seriously at Commines, where he received a shoulder wound.
render: Additions appear in a green, fixed-width font.

Electronic Edition Information:

Responsibility Statement:
  • Text Encoding by Susan Schreibman and Jarom McDonald
  • Annotations by Susan Schreibman
Publication Details:

Published by Susan Schreibman.

Thomas MacGreevy's poetry is reprinted here with the kind permission of Margaret Farrington and the late Elizabeth Ryan.

This poem is being made available for demonstration purposes only. It may not be reproduced without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For copyright information, please contact Susan Schreibman at susan.schreibman[AT]gmail.com

Encoding Principles

This is a demonstration document created for the Versioning machine using TEIP5 parallel segmentation.

X (Close panel)Version t7989-1-2: 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi, 1918' (TCD 7878/1/2)
Facsimile Image Placeholder
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Weeds of virtue
The Widowed Virtue
Nocturne, St. Eloi, 1918.
NOCTURNE OF ST. ELOI, 1918
NOCTURNE, SAINT ELOI
NOCTURNE
c
Critical note:

Saint Eloi, one of the most popular Saints of the Middle Ages, founded a monastery near the present village of Mont St. Eloi, five miles northwest of the city of Arras in northern France. The ruins of the monastery remain, and in 1917-18 were close to the Western Front. There is also a British Military Cemetery nearby.

Eloi may also be a reference to the words of Christ on the cross: 'Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' (Mark 15:34-5).

To the memory of [?] Geoffrey
England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
died of wounds received in action, in
France, September, 26, 1918.
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

To Geoffrey England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
"Died of wounds".
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

1
I labour in a barren place,
2
Afraid, aware, little
Alone, self-conscious, frightened,
blundering,
blundering;
lonely thing:
3
Above me,
Far
Far
above,
away,
away
stars wheeling
on through
in
space.
space,
4
About my feet, earth voices whispering.
X (Close panel)Version t7989-1-3: 'Nocturne of St. Eloi, 1918' (TCD MS 7989/1/3)
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Weeds of virtue
The Widowed Virtue
Nocturne, St. Eloi, 1918.
NOCTURNE OF ST. ELOI, 1918
NOCTURNE, SAINT ELOI
NOCTURNE
c
Critical note:

Saint Eloi, one of the most popular Saints of the Middle Ages, founded a monastery near the present village of Mont St. Eloi, five miles northwest of the city of Arras in northern France. The ruins of the monastery remain, and in 1917-18 were close to the Western Front. There is also a British Military Cemetery nearby.

Eloi may also be a reference to the words of Christ on the cross: 'Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' (Mark 15:34-5).

To the memory of [?] Geoffrey
England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
died of wounds received in action, in
France, September, 26, 1918.
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

To Geoffrey England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
"Died of wounds".
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

1
I labour in a barren place,
2
Afraid, aware, little
Alone, self-conscious, frightened,
blundering,
blundering;
lonely thing:
3
Above me,
Far
Far
above,
away,
away
stars wheeling
on through
in
space.
space,
4
About my feet, earth voices whispering.
X (Close panel)Version t7989-1-1: 'Nocturne, Saint Eloi' (TCD MS 79891/1)
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Weeds of virtue
The Widowed Virtue
Nocturne, St. Eloi, 1918.
NOCTURNE OF ST. ELOI, 1918
NOCTURNE, SAINT ELOI
NOCTURNE
c
Critical note:

Saint Eloi, one of the most popular Saints of the Middle Ages, founded a monastery near the present village of Mont St. Eloi, five miles northwest of the city of Arras in northern France. The ruins of the monastery remain, and in 1917-18 were close to the Western Front. There is also a British Military Cemetery nearby.

Eloi may also be a reference to the words of Christ on the cross: 'Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' (Mark 15:34-5).

To the memory of [?] Geoffrey
England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
died of wounds received in action, in
France, September, 26, 1918.
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

To Geoffrey England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
"Died of wounds".
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

1
I labour in a barren place,
2
Afraid, aware, little
Alone, self-conscious, frightened,
blundering,
blundering;
lonely thing:
3
Above me,
Far
Far
above,
away,
away
stars wheeling
on through
in
space.
space,
4
About my feet, earth voices whispering.
X (Close panel)Version nocturne_poems: published in Poems as 'Nocturne'
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Facsimile Image Placeholder
Weeds of virtue
The Widowed Virtue
Nocturne, St. Eloi, 1918.
NOCTURNE OF ST. ELOI, 1918
NOCTURNE, SAINT ELOI
NOCTURNE
c
Critical note:

Saint Eloi, one of the most popular Saints of the Middle Ages, founded a monastery near the present village of Mont St. Eloi, five miles northwest of the city of Arras in northern France. The ruins of the monastery remain, and in 1917-18 were close to the Western Front. There is also a British Military Cemetery nearby.

Eloi may also be a reference to the words of Christ on the cross: 'Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' (Mark 15:34-5).

To the memory of [?] Geoffrey
England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
died of wounds received in action, in
France, September, 26, 1918.
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

To Geoffrey England Taylor, 2nd Lieutenant, R.F.A.,
"Died of wounds".
b
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

1
I labour in a barren place,
2
Afraid, aware, little
Alone, self-conscious, frightened,
blundering,
blundering;
lonely thing:
3
Above me,
Far
Far
above,
away,
away
stars wheeling
on through
in
space.
space,
4
About my feet, earth voices whispering.
X (Close panel) Textual Notes
Critical note:

Saint Eloi, one of the most popular Saints of the Middle Ages, founded a monastery near the present village of Mont St. Eloi, five miles northwest of the city of Arras in northern France. The ruins of the monastery remain, and in 1917-18 were close to the Western Front. There is also a British Military Cemetery nearby.

Eloi may also be a reference to the words of Christ on the cross: 'Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' (Mark 15:34-5).

t7989-1-1
Highlight prose section
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

nocturne_poems
Highlight prose section
Biographical note:

Geoffrey England Taylor, a fellow cadet at the training academy at Bloomsbury in London, was MacGreevy's closest friend during the war. Both men were drafted to the same division in France. MacGreevy was assigned to guns, Taylor to trench mortars: 'the greatest misfortune that could befall a gunner-officer. Trench mortars were regarded with horror . . . [they were] a suicide club.'

While MacGreevy was recovering from his shoulder wound in Manchester, he found Taylor's name in the Died of Wounds section of the Casualty List. The death of Geoffrey Taylor, 'one of the most sensitively gentle' of men, represented to MacGreevy the worst horror of war: the destruction of 'life's hopes and dreams'; 'intelligence and beauty'.

Memoirs
, pp. 318-19.

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