Please help locate this Robert Lowell poem

March 29, 2020 7:55 PM

I recall two things about a certain poem of Robert Lowell I'm trying to locate:

1) It's one of his 'imitations', which are poems he wrote on the basis of previous English translations of poems from non-English language poets. He basically Lowell-ified them, to often great effect. The original in the case of the poem I'm seeking was a Spanish sonnet from Spain's Age of Gold, but I don't recall the precise author.

2) It contains the line "I do not see anything that does not remind me of death." It's probably the last line, though I'm not certain about that.

I have copies of pretty much all of the poetical works of Lowell, but haven't been able to track this poem down. Google has been no help. Literati of metafilter, do you recognize this poem and know where to find it?

posted by bertran to Writing & Language (2 answers total)

Best answer: You're looking for "The Ruins of Time" which is based on "Todo Avisa de la Muerte" by Francisco de Quevedo.
posted by Beethoven's Sith at 9:38 PM on March 29, 2020 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: That's it! Metafilter never ceases to amaze.

The line I was remembering is actually not in the Lowell version but was I guess my English for the final few from the Quevedo, which is maybe why I couldn't find the Lowell. Thanks for ID'ing the poem despite this!
posted by bertran at 9:49 PM on March 29, 2020 [2 favorites]