Archways Of Life

by Mercedes de Acosta

Archways of Life is a collection of poems written by the American poet, Mercedes de Acosta, and published in 1921. The book features a variety of lyrical and reflective poems that explore themes such as love, nature, spirituality, and the human experience. De Acosta's writing is characterized by its emotional depth and sensitivity, as well as its use of vivid imagery and metaphorical language. The poems in Archways of Life are divided into several sections, each of which explores a different aspect of life and the human condition. From the beauty of nature to the complexities of human relationships, this book offers a rich and thought-provoking exploration of the world around us. Overall, Archways of Life is a timeless work of poetry that continues to resonate with readers today.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.

Genres: Poetry

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1921

About the author

Though she was the author of books of prose, collections of poems, and scripts, Mercedes de Acosta is rarely remembered for her writing. She is, instead, celebrated as a passionate lover who had affairs with some of the most intriguing and beautiful women of her time. De Acosta is rumored to have boasted often of her prowess as a lover, even going so far as to declare “I can get any woman from any man.” Her list of lovers is long, including Eva Le Gallienne, Isadora Duncan, Marlene Dietrich, and, most famously, Greta Garbo.

De Acosta, the daughter of affluent Cuban immigrants, grew up in New York where, in the 1920s, she was a figure in both the city’s “high society” and its drag clubs and speakeasies. “These were years guided by the spirit of the New,” she wrote of this period; “We were on fire with fire, with a passion to create and a daring to achieve.” Equal to the times, de Acosta was a forward-thinking student of eastern religions and a strict vegetarian. An early feminist, de Acosta advocated, along with her friend and lover the dancer Isadora Duncan, the elimination of uncomfortable and restricting fashions for women; while other women were lacing themselves into corsets, de Acosta was often seen wearing trousers. When she convinced Garbo to visit her tailor and get a pair also, the two caused a great commotion on Hollywood Boulevard. “GARBO IN PANTS!” the headlines exclaimed. “Considering what walks down Hollywood Boulevard now,” de Acosta wrote in 1960, “it seems strange that Greta and I should have caused such a sensation.”

After a life surrounded by fame, glamour, and wealth, Mercedes de Acosta spent her last years in loneliness and poverty. She suffered a variety of illnesses later in life, requiring several painful surgeries, and was forced to sell her diamonds to pay her medical bills. Her 1960 tell-all autobiography, Here Lies the Heart, alienated many of de Acosta’s friends. Some claimed the book to be wildly exaggerated and even blatantly untrue.

Reviews

[Ceren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dit boek heeft zich een weg naar mij gebaand via een artikel over Greta Garbo waarin Mercedes de Acosta tussen de regels door werd genoemd. Blijkt dus dat ze openlijk lesbisch was (een gewaagde zet, ze leefde tussen 1892-1968) én ook nog eens relaties had met vrouwen uit de elite kringen van Hollywood en Broadway. Maar deze bundel deed het 'm helaas niet voor mij. Te vaag en nietszeggend. Een paar regels die ik wel aangenaam vond: "How glorious is the coming back to your face / After I have seen so many others / All missing something, / And failing me completely."

[dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

a short volume of mainly love poems, written by "notorious lesbian" Mercedes De Acosta in the early 1920s. some favorites -

Reflection
I, with my back to the window,
Can see bending and swinging trees,
A gay blue patch of the sky
With the corner of a cloud looking in
And you, with your face buried in a rose.
Thus, I have my whole world,
In just this little mirror
Which I hold in the hollow of my hand.

Footprints
Stretching before me the ever-moving but never-changing sea,
Looking so wild and dark with made white blotches of foam across its face -
While I,
A mere grain of sand in the turmoil and winds of Time,
Stand alert and tense,
Gazing forward and wondering and peering into the Future...
Across the depths of the sea hundreds of centuries roll past,
And along its shores I follow the worn and faded footprints
Of men long since dead.