A Blood-Stained Rose by Emily Zhang Lyrics
A Blood-Stained Rose
The golden sunlight grazes the surface of steady water
A figure - strong, stern, and calm
Sits in a throne amongst a bed of flowers.
Othello.
The warm breeze engulfs him as he glances to his left
And then to his right
A thriving rose catches his eye - gentle, sweet, and enticing.
Desdemona.
Beside him sits a young man.
Cassio.
In the distance, chaotic yelling forces its way into Othello’s ears.
The sound of clashing swords pierces through the air
The waters darken as patches of clouds loom overhead.
“What is the matter there?” (1) he whispers.
Led by his “mind’s eye,” (2)
The words travel through a current of air
And grasp the colliding weapons, freezing all.
The waves recede and the clouds break.
Silence.
Far out, mischievous eyes emerge, concealed by shade.
Iago.
His green scaly body slithers along the forest floor
Beneath the tall trees which ensure that “dramatic movement may be silhouetted.” (3)
As he approaches the clearing, “he sharply focuses all eyes and ears” (4)
Upon the blooming rose.
The rose travels far,
Clamped within a green tail.
In her absence remains nothing
But torn roots.
Othello’s words slice through the calm air:
“Thieves! Thieves! Thieves!” (5)
The golden sunlight fades, replaced by clouds of jealousy.
Suspicion boils in his blood, evaporating logic of the mind.
The water churns while a “tide of deep and sustained passion” (6) builds.
Amidst it all
A hiss of deception corrupts Othello’s mind.
Cassio, it says,
Cassio has the rose.
Othello, once led by his mind’s eye, clamps it shut.
Anger, violence, and jealousy reveal themselves,
Masked by a “new vision of truth.” (7)
Iago’s words slither into Othello’s body
And “open the chambers of the human heart.” (8)
Fire breaks out in the forest
Cassio’s seat next to Othello’s throne,
Now singed and smoking, with faint traces of red ink.
Waves of passion build as tear drops fall from the clouds
Lightning strikes, blinding (9) all from truth.
“Goats and monkeys” (10) roam freely.
The heart has taken over.
Within the clouds of jealousy
A break of clarity emerges.
It is Iago, clutching the rose.
Horror seeps into the heart’s eye
Among the ashes
Fallen from his throne; his words “harden up in silence.” (11)
A savage man lies beside
A blood-stained rose.
The golden sunlight grazes the surface of steady water
A figure - strong, stern, and calm
Sits in a throne amongst a bed of flowers.
Othello.
The warm breeze engulfs him as he glances to his left
And then to his right
A thriving rose catches his eye - gentle, sweet, and enticing.
Desdemona.
Beside him sits a young man.
Cassio.
In the distance, chaotic yelling forces its way into Othello’s ears.
The sound of clashing swords pierces through the air
The waters darken as patches of clouds loom overhead.
“What is the matter there?” (1) he whispers.
Led by his “mind’s eye,” (2)
The words travel through a current of air
And grasp the colliding weapons, freezing all.
The waves recede and the clouds break.
Silence.
Far out, mischievous eyes emerge, concealed by shade.
Iago.
His green scaly body slithers along the forest floor
Beneath the tall trees which ensure that “dramatic movement may be silhouetted.” (3)
As he approaches the clearing, “he sharply focuses all eyes and ears” (4)
Upon the blooming rose.
The rose travels far,
Clamped within a green tail.
In her absence remains nothing
But torn roots.
Othello’s words slice through the calm air:
“Thieves! Thieves! Thieves!” (5)
The golden sunlight fades, replaced by clouds of jealousy.
Suspicion boils in his blood, evaporating logic of the mind.
The water churns while a “tide of deep and sustained passion” (6) builds.
Amidst it all
A hiss of deception corrupts Othello’s mind.
Cassio, it says,
Cassio has the rose.
Othello, once led by his mind’s eye, clamps it shut.
Anger, violence, and jealousy reveal themselves,
Masked by a “new vision of truth.” (7)
Iago’s words slither into Othello’s body
And “open the chambers of the human heart.” (8)
Fire breaks out in the forest
Cassio’s seat next to Othello’s throne,
Now singed and smoking, with faint traces of red ink.
Waves of passion build as tear drops fall from the clouds
Lightning strikes, blinding (9) all from truth.
“Goats and monkeys” (10) roam freely.
The heart has taken over.
Within the clouds of jealousy
A break of clarity emerges.
It is Iago, clutching the rose.
Horror seeps into the heart’s eye
Among the ashes
Fallen from his throne; his words “harden up in silence.” (11)
A savage man lies beside
A blood-stained rose.