Solomon and the Witch

Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a scene of intense intimacy under a wild moon, where the narrator, an "Arab lady," experiences a moment of profound, almost mystical connection with "great Solomon." This connection manifests as speaking in a "strange tongue," a language beyond their individual identities, suggesting a merging or transcendence of self. The dominant tone is one of heightened emotion, mystery, and a desire for ultimate understanding or union. The core tension arises from the contrast between this ecstatic, transcendent moment and the perceived limitations of reality. Solomon's response, invoking a legendary cockerel, speaks of a desire for the world's end, a belief that only in death can true union be achieved. He posits that love, despite its intensity and capacity for pain, is ultimately bound by "cruelties of Choice and Chance," and even union can lead to despair when imagined realities clash with the real. This sets up a conflict between the fleeting perfection of their shared moment and the enduring, perhaps flawed, nature of existence. The most striking craft element is the extended metaphor of the cockerel's crow. It's presented as a singular event marking a moment of profound realization, a crow that "thought to have crowed it in again" – a desire to reassert eternity or perhaps signal the world's end. This avian prophecy is then linked to the lovers' union, suggesting their moment is cosmically significant, yet also subject to the same forces of chance and choice that govern all things. The imagery of "oil and wick are burned in one" powerfully captures the idea of complete fusion, yet the subsequent lines about the world remaining underscore the fragility of such perfect unity. These lyrics resonate because they capture the intoxicating feeling of a perfect, almost otherworldly connection, while simultaneously acknowledging the persistent reality that intrudes upon such moments. The narrator's final plea, "O! Solomon! let us try again," after the world has demonstrably "stayed," highlights a desperate, human yearning to recapture that transcendent state, even when the conditions seem impossible. The contrast between the "crushed grass" and the "wilder" moon creates a palpable sense of both the intensity of their physical encounter and the vast, untamed forces at play.