Feb
1
2009
lover’s pinch, follow up
So just as we finish writing about that CS Lewis passage about the lover’s pinch that hurts as it is desired, we find the referent (Anthony and Cleopatra) line as a NYTimes Sunday crossword clue. How about that, kids? Imagine my surprise, then, when I look up the line to find out the answer to the clue (its stroke is as the lover’s pinch….):
If thou and nature can so gently part,
The stroke of death is as a lover’s pinch,
Which hurts, and is desired.
(Anthony and Cleopatra 5.2.342-44)
In case you’re confused, the 5-letter answer is death. Ugh…
