Creator: C. P. Cavafy
Κ. Π. Καβάφης
Work Type: Poem
Date: 1897
Description:
C.P. Cavafy’s poem “Walls,” originally published in Greek in 1897 and translated into English by his brother John Cavafy in 1927, explores themes of isolation and confinement. The poem metaphorically depicts the construction of invisible walls around the speaker, symbolizing societal barriers and personal limitations that lead to a sense of entrapment and hopelessness. The walls are built silently and imperceptibly, leaving the speaker trapped without realising it until it is too late.
Dimitris Papanikolaou, in his article “‘Words That Tell and Hide’: Revisiting C. P. Cavafy’s Closets,” explains that Cavafy used the concept of concealment as a poetic strategy to reveal societal oppression. By writing about these walls, Cavafy not only exposes their oppressive nature but also uses them as a starting point for self-expression, transforming the “closet” from a space of silence into one of articulation and resistance against societal constraints
Χωρίς περίσκεψιν, χωρίς λύπην, χωρίς αιδώ
μεγάλα κ’ υψηλά τριγύρω μου έκτισαν τείχη.
Και κάθομαι και απελπίζομαι τώρα εδώ.
Άλλο δεν σκέπτομαι: τον νουν μου τρώγει αυτή η τύχη·
διότι πράγματα πολλά έξω να κάμω είχον.
A όταν έκτιζαν τα τείχη πώς να μην προσέξω.
Aλλά δεν άκουσα ποτέ κρότον κτιστών ή ήχον.
Aνεπαισθήτως μ’ έκλεισαν από τον κόσμον έξω.
John Cavafy’s translation:
Without reflection, without mercy, without shame,
they built strong walls and high, and compassed me about.
And here I sit now and consider and despair.
It wears away my heart and brain, this evil fate:
I had outside so many things to terminate.
Oh! why when they were building could I not beware!
But never a sound of building, never an echo came.
Insensibly they drew the world and shut me out.
1. Papanikolaou, Dimitris. “‘Words That Tell and Hide’: Revisiting C. P. Cavafy’s Closets.” Journal of Modern Greek Studies 23, no. 2 (October 2005): 373-398.
2. Onassis Foundation. “Walls by C. P. Cavafy.” Accessed June 30, 2024. https://www.onassis.org/initiatives/cavafy-archive/the-canon/walls.
3. “Walls by Constantine P. Cavafy: Poem Analysis.” PoetrySoup. Accessed June 30, 2024. https://www.poetrysoup.com/famous/poem/walls_758.
4. “Walls.” Poetry Foundation. Accessed June 30, 2024. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/52187/walls.
5. “Walls.” Poem Analysis of Walls by Constantine P. Cavafy for Close Reading. Accessed June 30, 2024. https://keytopoetry.com/constantine-p-cavafy/analyses/walls-2/.
Relationship to Sicilianos's Work:
C.P. Cavafy’s poem “Walls” and the depiction of walls in Yorgos Sicilianos’s Six Songs both explore themes of human loneliness and isolation. In “Walls,” Cavafy portrays an individual’s entrapment by invisible societal barriers, leading to a sense of hopeless confinement without realising how these walls were built around him. Sicilianos’s Six Fantastic Pieces, which are based on Cavafy’s poetry, also address the theme of isolation. In the song cycle, the walls symbolize the same confinement and separation from the outside world, emphasizing the inescapable loneliness inherent in human existence. Sicilianos chose not to set the poems to music directly but rather to express the emotions evoked by reading them, creating a musical narrative that reflects the psychological and emotional landscape of Cavafy’s verses.
See: Sicilianos Archive Files #4 in Six Fantastic Pieces.
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YSC97 |
Six Fantastic Pieces |
after six poems by C. P. Cavafy |
54 |
3333-4331, Harp, Timpani, Celesta, Percussion (Xylophone, Snare Drum, Piccolo Snare, Bass Drum, Cymbals, Tam-Tam), Strings |
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