Author notes

The Glove And The Tigers

PaulEberhardt

on May 5, 2011

Any concerned parents out there, please note that this mailman is of course a decent mailman and doesn't quote Bruce Willis in "Die Hard" in his battle cry. He actually shouts: "Yippee-ki-yay, stupid tigers!!" ;)

However, I quoted someone on this page: The blackout sequence's text is entirely composed of excerpts from "The Glove And The Lions" by Leigh Hunt (1784-1859) (with a few adjustments). It's based on a true story that has inspired a number of very competent poets, among them Robert Browning and Friedrich Schiller. I originally thought of using Schiller's famous version - I indeed do so in the Low German version - but when I read Hunt's I changed my plan at short notice. That one is shorter and (in my humble opinion) rhymes better. Also, he wrote it in English in the first place, and let's face it: nothing loses as much in translation as poetry does. It was not an easy decision, though. Schiller's is the only version to actually feature any tiger at all, plus he does a better job describing the big cat's behaviour. (Still I think I chose well. [boaster mode ="on"]Heh! I don't study English literature for nothing, after all![/show-off]
Btw. King Francis is called King Frank here in reference to the German Mail's current CEO… Am I again getting too obsessed with obscure details that nobody will possibly notice? - Of course I am! Totally so! I just can't help it. :/ At least I'm trying not to let it get in the way of anything else.

Thank you for reading and commenting!