Sappho Connection in Book of the Short Sun
I was reading the poetry of Sappho and was stricken by a line that is very likely being referenced in Short Sun. The following is a translation of Sappho’s fragments from John Myers:
So ruthless shepherds crush beneath their feet
The hill flower blooming in the summer heat;
The hyacinth whose purple heart is found
Left bruised and dead, to darken on the ground.
Extremely reminiscent of the famous line from the end of Return to the Whorl:
Though trodden beneath the shepherd's heel, the wild hyacinth blooms on the ground.
Of course, in the original, the hyacinth dies, but in Wolfe’s rendition it blooms despite being trampled. I couldn’t find anyone else who had commented on the allusion online so I decided to post about it here. I don’t have time to really investigate right now or write an essay or anything, but wanted to put this out there for discussion before I forget.
Edit: sorry for formatting I’m on mobile.