quote · Legacy record
What shall I sing when all is sung And every tale is told, And in the world is nothing young That was not long since old? Why should I fret unwilling ears With old things sung anew While voices from the old dead year Still go on singing too? A dead man singing of his maid Makes all my rhymes in vain, Yet his poor lips must fade and fade, And mine shall sing again. Why should I strive thro’ weary moons To make my music true? Only the dead men know the tunes The live world dances to.
What shall I sing when all is sung And every tale is told, And in the world is nothing young That was not long since old? Why should I fret unwilling ears With old things sung anew While voices from the old dead year Still go on singing too? A dead man singing of his maid Makes all my rhymes in vain, Yet his poor lips must fade and fade, And mine shall sing again. Why should I strive thro’ weary moons To make my music true? Only the dead men know the tunes The live world dances to.
In print by 1921 AD · modern
Recorded in a printed collection by this date; the original date of these words is still unknown.
Meaning not yet available
An individual explanation has not yet been added. We do not substitute a generic description for an interpretation of these particular words.
Begin with source-checked readings and explanations ↗Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- R. le Gallienne (identity unresolved)
Attribution: unknown - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- In print by 1921 AD · modern
In print by 1921: recorded in My Commonplace Book (third English edition,1921). Collection publication is an upper bound for this wording, not its earliest origin, composition date or the author's lifetime.
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- My Commonplace Book (third English edition,1921) (1921 AD)
Page 188 · printed citation: R. le Gallienne. · compiler notes excluded
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.