The Lamp and the Bell

by Edna St. Vincent Millay

Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950) who also wrote under the pseudonym Nancy Boyd, was an American lyrical poet and playwright. Her best-known poem might be First Fig from A Few Figs from Thistles (1920). She won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1923, for The Harp- Weaver and Other Poems. She was the first woman to be so honoured for poetry. She was also known for her unconventional, bohemian lifestyle and her many love affairs. In 1943 she was awarded the Frost Medal for her lifetime contribution to American poetry. She was the sixth recipient of that honour, and the second woman. Her reputation was damaged by poetry she wrote in support of the Allied war effort during World War II. Amongst her other works are: Renasance and Other Poems (1917), The Princess Marries the Page (1918/1932), Two Slatterns and a King (1921), The Lamp and the Bell (1921), Second April (1921), Fatal Interview (1931), Conversation at Midnight (1937), Make Bright the Arrows (1940), The Murder of Lidice (1942), Collected Lyrics (1943), and Mine the Harvest (1954).

This edition of The Lamp and the Bell is available on the Internet Archive:
https://archive.org/details/lampandth...

Genres: Plays, Poetry, Classics, Lesbian, Queer

71 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1921

About the author

Edna St. Vincent Millay was an American lyrical poet and playwright. She received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1923, the third woman to win the award for poetry, and was also known for her feminist activism and her many love affairs. She used the pseudonym Nancy Boyd for her prose work.

This famous portrait of Vincent (as she was called by friends) was taken by Carl Van Vechten in 1933.

Reviews

[tegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

don't test me edna... i WILL weep

"BIA. shall I forget, then, when i am old, i ever was a child?
i tell you i shall never think of you
throughout my life, without such tenderness
as breaks the heart,—and i shall think of you
whenever i am most happy, whenever i am
most sad, whenever i see a beautiful thing.
you are a burning lamp to me, a flame
the wind cannot blow out, and i shall hold you
high in my hand against whatever darkness.

BEA. you are to me a silver bell in a tower.
and when it rings i know i am near home."

"BEA. the way you draw your gloves on is to me
more marvelous than the way the sun comes up!"

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fairy tale drama written by Millay for the students at Vassar College to perform, this is an over-the-top melodrama with love triangles, deathbed vigils, accidental murder, the works, and I loved it. It's beautifully written and Millay knows just which emotional buttons to push.

[Melissa]

As always, these are the energies and writings of a woman who was at once, Euterpe and Athena. If I live to be two hundred, both her works AND the woman herself, shall always hold a place of quiet honour and deep affection in my soul.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This at several points really reminded me of Shakespeare. And I say that as a person who does actually enjoy reading Shakespeare. If you're not familiar/don't enjoy reading scripts I wouldn't say this is one to start with or one that will change your mind. I enjoyed the dialogue, and found the plot paced well but perhaps a bit thin. I think the characters were (unsurprisingly considering the script format and the length of the play) two dimensional, and, honestly, there were more characters than I think the average reader would like to contend with. But I did find myself very moved at times with the emotion of the characters, and I will definitely continue reading Millay's work.

[Henry Sturcke · Rating 3 out of 5]

This five-act play is a pull-out-all-the-stops fairy tale to honor Vassar College on its jubilee. The writing is by turns light-hearted and pathetic. The genius evident in poems she had written by this time is not on display, unless her descriptions of the sports activities the two young women Beatrice and Bianca share (rowing, riding, tennis) really are—as I suspect—full of Shakespeare-worthy double entendres.

[Bruce · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like the idea of the lamp and the bell, but I did not like the play.

[Myrna Azzopardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very sweet story. Should be performed more often as it would introduce children to certain language and themes slowly (such as friendship and unrequited love) and adults may enjoy it as well. Language and imagery used is obviously not very refined but I don't even think that was St. Vincent Millay's intention. Definitely recommend for pre-teens.