I’m Lagides, king, absolute master (through my power and wealth) of sensual pleasure. There’s no Macedonian, no barbarian, equal to me or even approaching me. The son of Selefkos is really a joke with his cheap lechery. But if you’re looking for other things, note this too: my city’s the greatest preceptor, queen of the Greek world, genius of all knowledge, of every art.
Reprinted from C.P. CAVAFY: Collected Poems Revised Edition, translated by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard, edited by George Savidis. Translation copyright © 1975, 1992 by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard. Princeton University Press. For reuse of these translations, please contact Princeton University Press.
The Canon