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Behind-The-Books Blog
Ode to a fallen hero
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Everyone in the country – and probably the rest of the world too – now knows that David Beckham won’t be playing in the World Cup. Big boo! And the tragedy of Beckham’s Achilles injury has even been lifted from the realms of news-worthy media to literature by the pen of poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy.
I’m not sure a footballer’s injury would normally inspire poetry, but if it opens poetry to boys and those who wouldn’t normally read it, then it can only be a good thing. Drawing the parallel between the football hero and Greek hero, her poem is fun and approachable, with clever references to Beckham’s unforgettable sarong-wearing episode and his Spice Girl wife…
Achilles (for David Beckham)
Myth’s river – where his mother
dipped him, fished him, a
slippery golden boy flowed on,
his name on its lips.
Without him, it was prophesied,
they would not take Troy.
Women hid him, concealed him
in girls’ sarongs; days of
sweetmeats, spices, silver songs…
But when Odysseus came, with an
athlete’s build, a sword and a shield,
he followed him to the battlefield,
the crowd’s roar,
And it was sport, not war,
his charmed foot on the ball …
But then his heel, his heel, his heel…
Louise Watson, Editor
Oh, that is hilarious! I am mourning seeing him on the football pitch too, I have to admit. He almost makes football bearable.
Posted on March 23rd, 2010 at 4:17 pmLeave a Comment
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Persuasion, by Jane Austen. Sara: Yes, I'm still on my Jane Austen kick. After this one I will try reading something new...
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