Non sum qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae Summary & Analysis
by Ernest Dowson

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"Non sum qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae" is the British poet Ernest Dowson's song of hopeless longing. In the poem, a languishing speaker laments that, no matter how hard he tries to distract himself with sex and partying, thoughts of his lost love, Cynara, always intrude on his fun. Though he's had plenty of lovers since Cynara, his haunting memories of his purer, deeper love for her keep him "faithful" to her "in [his] fashion." This poem first appeared in an 1894 anthology by a group of poets known as the Rhymers' Club, many of whom were notable members of the Decadent movement.

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