Without You
Without You - meaning Summary
Loneliness Made Corporeal
Hesse's poem depicts acute longing and the physical ache of solitude after a loved one is absent. The speaker describes sleepless nights, an empty pillow, and the ritual of reaching for an absent partner, ending in a painful awakening. Pleasure and daily comforts become tainted—wine tastes of poison—so that every joy contains pain. The poem emphasizes the persistent, bodily experience of missing someone and the toll of isolation.
Read Complete AnalysesMy Pillow gazes upon me at night Empty as a gravestone; I never thought it would be so bitter To be alone, Not to lie down asleep in your hair. I lie alone in a silent house, The hanging lamp darkened, And gently stretch out my hands To gather in yours, And softly press my warm mouth Toward you, and kiss myself, exhausted and weak- Then suddenly I'm awake And all around me the cold night grows still. The star in the window shines clearly- Where is your blond hair, Where your sweet mouth? Now I drink pain in every delight And poison in every wine; I never knew it would be so bitter To be alone, Alone, without you.
Translated by James Wright
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