The Vampire - Charles Baudelaire

 

The Vampire

by Charles Baudelaire

You who, like the stab of a knife,

Entered my plaintive heart;

You who, strong as a herd

Of demons, came, ardent and adorned,

To make your bed and your domain

Of my humiliated mind

-- Infamous bitch to whom I'm bound

Like the convict to his chain,

Like the stubborn gambler to the game,

Like the drunkard to his wine,

Like the maggots to the corpse,

-- Accurst, accurst be you!

I begged the swift poniard

To gain for me my liberty,

I asked perfidious poison

To give aid to my cowardice.

Alas! both poison and the knife

Contemptuously said to me:

"You do not deserve to be freed

From your accursed slavery,

Fool! -- if from her domination

Our efforts could deliver you,

Your kisses would resuscitate

The cadaver of your vampire!"

~Charles Baudelaire~

(Translated by William Aggeler, from The Flowers of Evil)

BIO: Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867) was a French poet, art critic, essayist, and translator whose innovative style influenced such poets as Paul Verlaine, Stephane Mallarme, and Arthur Rimbaud. A close friend of painter Edouard Manet, he is best known for his collection of poems, The Flowers of Evil.