Lawrence Ferlinghetti dans les années 1960

 

 

 

Images d’un Monde En-Allé

5
                       

                         Pas trop longtemps

                                              après le début des temps

              sur le coup de neuf heures

                                            une nuit d’été

                                                                 pas trop chaude

                 sur le seuil
                                            du NEW PISA

                                                                    surplombé par une

                                    tête en plâtre oubliée de DANTE

                                                                     attendant sa table

                                              et observant

                                                                 Tout       

       
                    il y avait un homme avec un miroir en guise de tête

qui n’avait pas l’air si singulier que ça

                                                            à ceci près

                                     que de vraies oreilles en dépassaient

                                                     et qu’il portait un panneau

                                            où on lisait

                      UN POEME EST UN MIROIR

QUE L’ON PROMENE LE LONG D’UN CHEMIN ETRANGE

                                                              enfin bref

                  comme je le disais

                                   pas si longtemps après le début

                       des temps

                                             cet homme qui était tout yeux

                       n’avait pas de bouche

                   Tout ce qu’il savait faire c’était montrer aux autres

              ce qu’il voulait dire

                          Et il s’avère

                                                         qu’il se prétendait

                               peintre

                                                  Mais enfin bref

                   ce peintre
                                       qui ne pouvait ni parler ni rien dire

                                               de ce qu’il

                                                                    pensait

              semblait être le plus heureux peintre

                      du monde entier

   là debout

                              en train de tout capter

                                                   et réfléchissant

           Tout

                                       dans son gros grand

                                                           Œil affamé

                                                mais enfin bref

   j’ai donc vu reflété là

                                 Quatre murs couverts de tableaux

de la tour penchée de Pise

                          chacune penchant dans une direction différente

                                          Cinq alcôves avec des tables

                          Quinze tables sans alcôve

                     Un bar

                                 dont le barman ressemblait à

                                                              un champion de baseball

                                     avec plein de trophées locaux

                                                 pendus derrière

Trois serveuses de dimension et allures diverse

                              une grande comme un fox terrier

                              une grosse comme un petit cachalot

                              une étrange comme un ange

                    mais avec toutes les trois

                                     les mêmes yeux

               Une porte de cuisine et le frère cuisinier

                                                                       s’y encadrant

                                                      avec les mêmes yeux

 

                                                                    et environ

cent soixante -trois personnes toutes en train de parler de

gesticuler de rire et de manger de boire et de sourire et de faire

la tête et de secouer la tête ouvrant la bouche pour y fourrer

fourchettes et cuillers et de mâcher et d’avaler toutes sortes de

produits et de se caler sur leur chaise de se reposer peut-être

et de boire un café et d’allumer une cigarette et de se lever et

ainsi de suite

                                                                       et ainsi de-

                                                              hors dan la nuit

                             sans même remarquer                         

 
             l’homme à tête de miroir   

sous la tête oubliée

                                               en plâtre de DANTE

                                                                                 qui toise

                                                                   tout le monde

                                                                    avec les mêmes yeux

                                  comme s’il cherchait encore

                                                                         Partout

                                           sa Béatrice perdue

                                                          mais avec juste un soupçon

                                                 de rouge à lèvres diabolique

                                                                       au bout du bout

                                                                  du nez

 

 

Traduit de l’anglais par Marianne Costa

 

In, Lawrence Ferlinghetti : « A Coney Island of the mind & autres poèmes »

 

Maelström éditions, Bruxelles (Belgique), 2008

 

Du même auteur :

 

Un Coney Island de l’esprit (1 – 6) / A Coney Island of the mind (1 – 6) (19/01/2021)

 

Un Coney Island de l’esprit (7 – 15) / A Coney Island of the mind (7 – 15) (19/01/2022)

 

Un Coney Island de l’esprit (16 – 2023) / A Coney Island of the mind (16 – 23) (19/01/2023)

 

Un Coney Island de l’esprit (24– 29) / A Coney Island of the mind (24 – 29) 19/01/2024)

 

Images d’un Monde En-Allé (1- 4) / Pictures of the Gone World (1 - 4) (19/01/2025)

 

 

 

Pictures of the Gone World

 

5
                   

     Not too long

                                              after the beginning of time

              upon a nine o’clock

                                            of a itt too hot

                                                                 summer night

                 standing in the door

                                            of the NEW PISA

                                                                    under the forgotten

                                    plaster head of DANTE

                                                                     waiting for a table

                                              and watching

                                                                 Everything  

        
                                               was a man with a  mirror for a head

wich didn’t look so abnormal at that

                                                            except that

                                     real ears stuck out

                                                     and he had a sign

                                            wich read

                           A POEM IS A MIRROR

 

           WALKING DOWN A STRANGE STREET

                                                              but anyway

                  as I was saying

                                   not too long after the beginning

                       of time

                                             this man who was all eyes

                       had no mouth

                   All he could do was show people

     what he meant

                          and it turned out

                                                         he claimed to be

                               a painter

                                                  But anyway

                   this painter

                                       who couldn’t talk or tell anything

                                               about what he

                                                                    meant

              looked like just about the happiest painter

                      in all rhe world

   standing there

                              talking it all ‘in’      

                                             
‘                                                  and reflecting
           Everything

                                       in his geat big

                                                           Hungry Eye     

                                         
                                but anyway

   so it was I saw reflected there

                                 Four walls covered with pictures

of the leaning tower of Pisa

                          all of them leaning in different directions

                                          Five booths with tables

                          Fifteen tables without booths

                     One bar

                                 with one bartender lookinf like a

                                                              baseball champ

                                    with  a  lot of naborhood trophies

                                                 hung up behind

Three waitresses of various sizes and faces

                              one as big as a little fox terrier

                              one as large as a small sperm whale

                              one as strange as an angel

                    but all three

                                     with the same eyes

               One kitchendoor with one brother cook

                                                                       standing in it

                                                      with the same eyes

 

                                                                    and about

one hundredandsixtythree people all talking and

wavibg and laughing and eating and drinking and

smiling and frowning and shaking heads and opening

mouths and putting forks and spoons in them and 

   
chewing and swallowing all kinds of produce and

sitting back and relaxing maybe and drinking coffee  

    
and lighting cigarettes and getting up and so on

                                                                    and so off   

                                                        
                                                              into the night

                             without ever noticing     

                      
             the man with the mirrorhead   

below the forgotten

                                               plasterhead of DANTE

                                                                                 looking down

                                                                   at everyone

                                                                   with the same eyes

                                  as if he were all searching

                                                                         Everywhere

                                           for his lost Beatrice

                                                          but with just a touch

                                                 of devilish lipstick

                                                                       on the very tip

                                                                  of his nose

 

 

Pictures of the Gone World

City Lights Booksellers & Publishers, San Francisco (USA),1958

 

Poème précédent en anglais :

 

Lawrence Ferlinghetti  : Images d’un Monde En-Allé (1- 4) / Pictures of the Gone World (1 - 4) (19/01/2025)

 

Poème suivant en anglais :

Walt Whitman : Chanson de la hache à large lame / Song of the broad-axe (28/01/2025)