Quotation Q&A

Correspondence on not-so-famous lost words

J.P. Akins requests the complete text of a poem he remembers from his youth about the Harvard-Yale game and the way it “releases us, changed and changeless, into the November evening. ” He thinks it may be the work of the late David McCord ’21, L.H.D. ’56.

 

From our archives, here are more as-yet-unsourced phrases and aphorisms, in hopes that a reappearance, in print and online, will yield identifications.

“Whereas the music of Beethoven as-pires to heaven, the music of Mozart was written from there.”
“…and rain, that graybeard sing….”
“…easier to imagine the weather putting something off because of Miss ….”
“…like one of the seven deadly sins wrapped up in the cloak of the other six.”
“Alas, we would no longer be able to listen to the music of Mozart.”
“Cynicism is the fruit of disappointed hopes that were never well justified to begin with.”
“Lust is the lamp that lifts the gloom./ Lust is the light that fills the room.”


Send inquiries and answers to Chapter and Verse, Harvard Magazine, 7 Ware Street, Cambridge 02138, or via e-mail to chapterandverse@harvardmag.com.

Most popular

Harvard scientists identify hundreds of genes under selective pressure.

In her memoir All That's Unseen, Emilee Hackney explores religion, friendship, and home.

College staff whose jobs will be changed or eliminated were notified this week.

Explore More From Current Issue

Colorful abstract design resembling an octopus with intricate swirls and patterns.

Growing liver implants, mapping the sense of smell, and journalism at risk

A woman with long, silver hair rests her chin on her hand, wearing a black top.

Author and Harvard Divinity School writer-in-residence Terry Tempest Williams finds beauty in the world around us.

A profile illustration of a man surrounded by colorful, whimsical text in multiple languages.

For both American and international students, growing up is like learning a new language.