A correspondence corner for not-so-famous lost words

A correspondence corner for not-so-famous lost words

Donald Kinnear asks which Aldous Huxley novel “contains a dissertation on death and dying with the first line, ‘Death is the beginning, not the end.’ It was written in French and then translated into English.”

 

More queries from the archives:

A hymn containing the phrase “Jesus seeking the humble heart.”

A poem containing the lines: “In the corner of the field/A boy flicks a spotted beetle from her wrist.”

A poem that refers to geese and also contains the line, “The distant hills draw nigh.”

A poem that contains the sentence, “The woodlands lead the feet to green adventure.”

The titles of a Broadway show and the song from that show with a chorus declaring, “Maybe I’ll jump overboard but I’m afraid I’ll drown;/Water isn’t cool enough to cool this baby down.”

 

“stalk” (January-February). Responding to a request for pre-1968 usage of “stalk” in the “modern sense of obsessive, unwanted attention,” a reader suggested a line from Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida: “…I stalk about her door,/like a strange soul upon the Stygian banks/ staying for waftage” (act III, scene ii).

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

You might also like

A theatrical reenactment explores a 1976 clash between science and democracy.

Readers Respond to Our Adaptations Survey

We asked people to share their favorite art adaptations. Here’s what they said.

The Harvard Arts Medalist wants his smash-hit Cats revival to reach “as many young queer people” as possible.

Most popular

An animal’s journey from grief to love shows how much humans need each other, too.

The former economics concentrator brings his talent for crunching numbers to netminding.

The retired government professor has been a rare conservative voice on campus for decades.

Explore More From Current Issue

A chaotic scene in a messy room with people engaging in various activities, some cleaning.

Until the 1950s, professionals cleaned up after students in the dorms.

Vibrant urban scene at dusk featuring a mural on a building and illuminated structures.

The Goel Center in Allston will open for performances in the fall of 2026.

A woman with long hair stands confidently with crossed arms next to a pickup truck.

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