"One that lives by other's breath, / Dieth also by his death."

This poem by the English Jesuit martyr St. Robert Southwell is a meditation upon Mary Magdalene at the foot of the Cross. As an eventual martyr himself, Southwell's reflections on death in the poem are prescient.

The poem is prefaced by a brief letter on the nature and purpose of poetry, written separately by Southwell to his cousin, who seems also to have been a poet. The letter played a large role in the significant influence Southwell had upon later writers of the English Renaissance, with even William Shakespeare seeming to have included a response to this letter in A Midsummer Night's Dream. In fact, some scholars have argued that the "cousin" to whom Southwell writes in this letter is none other than Shakespeare himself.

Learn more about St. Robert Southwell, his poetry, and the poetry of other English Martyrs, in episode 69 of the Catholic Culture Podcast.

Links

St. Robert Southwell—Love & Suffering: 3 Poems | Catholic Culture Audiobooks: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/love-suffering-3-poems-by-st-robert-southwell/

Ep. 69—Poetry of the English Martyrs—Benedict Whalen | Catholic Culture Podcast: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/ep-69-poetry-english-martyrs-benedict-whalen/

"Mary Magdalene's Complaint at Christ's Death" full text: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Mary_Magdalen%27s_Complaint_at_Christ%27s_Death

Lyra Martyrum: The Poetry of the English Martyrs https://www.clunymedia.com/product/lyra-martyrum/

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