redpaul1
Well-known member
Waikiki
I see Ralf onlyukethatmatters and I visit the same tailor (Persky's of Boston, I believe ).
In October 1913, Rupert Brooke arrived in Waikiki, en route to Samoa, New Zealand, and ultimately Tahiti, before returning to the UK and taking up a commission in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (the 'Wavy Navy') in 1914. He died of blood poisoning on the Greek Island of Skyros shortly before the commencement of the Dardanelles campaign. The poem 'Waikiki' was written on the island and first appeared in his volume of poetry "1914 and Other Poems," first published by Sidgwick & Jackson in 1915.
One thing that's particularly interesting about this sonnet is his phonetic spelling of "eukalili", made at a time when the spelling and presumably the pronunciation was not yet settled.
Unfortunately, it does little to resolve the ookelele/youkelele question.
One would think that Brooke intended the 'eu' in 'eukalili' to be pronounced 'you', as in 'europe'; but in the line in question he prefaces 'eukalili' with the indefinite article 'an', which would indicate that Brooke intended the 'eu' to be pronounced 'oo' - 'ookalili' - except,... that it was the practice of upper class Edwardians to preface every vowel, and every 'h', with 'an' - "an hotel" for example!
The late great John King ended his researches into the issue by saying "your guess is as good as mine"!
Words by Rupert Brooke; arrangement, etc by me.
I see Ralf onlyukethatmatters and I visit the same tailor (Persky's of Boston, I believe ).
In October 1913, Rupert Brooke arrived in Waikiki, en route to Samoa, New Zealand, and ultimately Tahiti, before returning to the UK and taking up a commission in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (the 'Wavy Navy') in 1914. He died of blood poisoning on the Greek Island of Skyros shortly before the commencement of the Dardanelles campaign. The poem 'Waikiki' was written on the island and first appeared in his volume of poetry "1914 and Other Poems," first published by Sidgwick & Jackson in 1915.
One thing that's particularly interesting about this sonnet is his phonetic spelling of "eukalili", made at a time when the spelling and presumably the pronunciation was not yet settled.
Unfortunately, it does little to resolve the ookelele/youkelele question.
One would think that Brooke intended the 'eu' in 'eukalili' to be pronounced 'you', as in 'europe'; but in the line in question he prefaces 'eukalili' with the indefinite article 'an', which would indicate that Brooke intended the 'eu' to be pronounced 'oo' - 'ookalili' - except,... that it was the practice of upper class Edwardians to preface every vowel, and every 'h', with 'an' - "an hotel" for example!
The late great John King ended his researches into the issue by saying "your guess is as good as mine"!
Words by Rupert Brooke; arrangement, etc by me.
Code:
Waikiki
Em Am
Warm perfumes like a breath from vine and tree
Em B7 Em
Drift down the darkness__. Plangent, hidden from eyes
Em Am
Somewhere an 'euka-leli' thrills and cries
Em B7 Em
And stabs with pain the night's brown savagery.
F♯ B A
And dark scents whisper; and dim waves creep to me__,
A B A F♯
Gleam like a woman's hair, stretch out, and rise;
Em Am
And new stars burn into the ancient skies,
Em B7 Em
Over the murmurous soft Hawaian sea.
Em Am
And I recall, lose, grasp, forget again,
Em B7 Em
And still re-member, a tale I have heard, or known,
F♯ B A
An empty tale, of idleness and pain___,
A B A
Of two that loved -- or did not love -- and one___
F♯ Em Am
Whose per-plexed heart did e-vil, foolishly,
Em B7 Em
A long while since, and by some other sea.
Rupert Brooke 1913
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