Topical Guide 532
Mark Dorset
Allusion
Reservations Recommended, Chapter 6:
It took a long time before anyone realized that the party was killing the place. […] When total collapse finally came, the space remained vacant for months. After Liz left Matthew and he moved into the city, he would see, more often than he could have believed possible, a former regular standing at the door, peering in, blocking the reflections with his hand, apparently mystified that the place should be closed, hoping that there might be someone inside who would open up for him.
Omar Khayyam, Rubáiyát, translated by Edward Fitzgerald:
And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before
The Tavern shouted — “Open then the Door!
You know how little while we have to stay,
And, once departed, may return no more.”
See also:
Allusion; Quotation TG 140, TG 455, TG 462, TG 502, TG 506
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