Both the ancient poem and the modern song characterize love as an almost painful force that physically affects a person. For example, in Sappho’s love poem, “a slender flame” touches the narrator’s skin and she is so overcome that she feels “little short of dead”. Unlike the traditional idea of love being a gentle and sweet thing, this poem talks about love as a violent passion. In addition, the song by Borns begins with saying “You dug my heart a grave”, as if love buries and kills the heart. Despite being from two different eras, Sappho and Borns both see love in a different light than most others as they focus on how it really feels to love someone. They convey the agony and almost illness caused by their feelings toward their lovers.
Sappho illustrates the narrator’s feelings as the narrator is with the person they love. On the other hand, Borns writes about the pain he feels as he reminisces over his experiences with the woman he loves. Sappho’s poem is more of an illustration of fascination , while “Dug My Heart” is more of a longing for someone after being with them because their past experiences were so sweet. Either way, there is pain associated with their feelings of love.
Sappho
31(L-P) lines 1-17
He seems to me the equal of the gods, that man, who sits with you face to face and, near you, listens closely to your lilting voice, your tempting laugh, which sets my heart a-flutter in my breast. For when I see you even a moment, I can’t speak any longer, but my tongue goes mute…,a sudden, slender flame invades my flesh, my eyes go dark, my ears are roaring, cold sweat covers me, a trembling seizes all my body, paler than grass am I, and little short of dead I seem to myself.