The Eve of Saint Agnes

"ST. AGNES’ Eve—Ah, bitter chill it was! The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold; The hare limp’d trembling through the frozen grass, And silent was the flock in woolly fold:"

Thus begins the exquisite poem by John Keats, first published in 1820, about the meeting of two lovers, Madeline and Porphyro . The basis of this poem is the superstitious belief that a maiden would see her future husband if she performed a certain ritual on the Eve of Saint Agnes, the twentieth of January. The feast day of St. Agnes is the 21st. When I was in high school my English teacher read the whole of this poem to the class, clutching the volume of verse to her chest at once point and lifting her eyes heavenward in a rapturous sigh. "Just listen to the beauty of these words," she said. And I did, smitten by the sumptuous sensual imagery, and it has a happy ending which is always richly satisfying.

St. Agnes is a virgin martyr, her symbol a young woman holding a palm leaf or a sword and a lamb. The flower of St. Agnes is the white Christmas rose. Agnes died for her faith in the early fourth century during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian who ordered the last great persecution of Christians. Only 12 yrs old at the time, she was beheaded for her refusal to marry a Roman prefect, an unbeliever. She had already chosen not to marry and be a bride of Christ. Her death had a profound impact and she became one of the most honored of Roman martyrs and Christian saints, and is regarded as the patron saint of young women and bodily purity.

Many old customs prevalent on the Eve of St. Agnes involved rites in which young maidens would discover their future husbands. Dreams were also important. If a maid went to bed without supper or fasted all day and ate only a salt-filled egg at night, she would dream of her future husband. Another custom was to take a sprig of rosemary and thyme, sprinkle each three times with water, and put one in each shoe. Then a shoe with its sprig was put on either side of her bed, while she repeated:

"St. Agnes, that's to lovers kind,
Come, ease the trouble of my mind."

She then was certain to dream of her husband. There are other rites associated with the Eve of St. Agnes, one, if a maiden went to bed without looking behind her and lay on her back with her hands under her head, her future husband would appear in her dream, kiss her, and feast with her.

"The Eve of St. Agnes" is one of Keat's best-loved works. Another of my favorite passages:

"Her vespers done, Of all its wreathed pearls her hair she frees; Unclasps her warmed jewels one by one; Loosens her fragrant bodice; by degrees Her rich attire creeps rustling to her knees: Half-hidden, like a mermaid in sea-weed, Pensive awhile she dreams awake, and sees, In fancy, fair St. Agnes in her bed, But dares not look behind, or all the charm is fled..."

Contributed by Beth Trissel, a big Keat’s fan.