Roses are red, that much is true, but violets are purple, not fucking blue.
I have been waiting for this post all my life.
They are indeed purple, But one thing youāve missed: The concept ofĀ āpurpleā Didnāt always exist.
Some cultures lack names For a color, you see. Hence good old Homer And his āwine-dark sea.ā
A usage so quaint, A phrasing so old, For verses of romance Is sheer fucking gold.
So roses are red. Violets once were called blue. Iām hugely pedantic But what else is new?
My friend youāre not wrong About Homerās wine-ey sea! Colours are a matter Of cultural contingency;
Words are in flux And meanings they drift But the word purple Youāve given short shrift.
The concept of purple, My friends, is old And refers to a pigment once precious as gold.
By crushing up molluscs From the wine-dark sea You make a dye: Imperial decree
Meant that in Rome, to wear purpura was a privilege reserved
For only the emperor!
The word āpurpleā, for clothes so fancy, Entered English By the ninth century
.
Why then are voilets Not purple in song? The dye from this mollusc, known for so long
Is almost magenta; More red than blue. The concept of purple is old, and yet new.
The dye is red, So this might be true: Roses are purple And violets are blue
.
