Lucius Atherton looks back from the grave on a life that went from dazzling to degrading. As a young man with a curled moustache, black hair, tight trousers, and a diamond stud, he was a charming “knave of hearts” who won women through thrilling, even dangerous affairs. But once gray hair appeared, a new generation laughed at him instead of fearing him. His exciting adventures faded into shabby, secondhand romances. He ended up toothless, untidy, and forgotten, eating cheap meals at Mayer’s restaurant—a rural Don Juan reduced to the dregs of life. The mood is bitter, tired, and quietly self-aware. Hearing a great shade sing of an idealized Beatrice, Lucius realizes that the same driving force that inspired love and greatness in that man only pushed him toward emptiness and decay. It is a rueful confession about wasted charisma and the humiliation of growing old.
Lucius Atherton — Summary
When my moustache curled, And my hair was black, And I wore tight trousers And a diamond stud, I was an excellent knave of hearts and took many a trick. But when the gray hairs began to appear— Lo! a new generation of girls Laughed at me, not fearing me, And I had no more exciting adventures Wherein I was all but shot for a heartless devil, But only drabby affairs, warmed-over affairs Of other days and other men. And time went on until I lived at Mayer’s restaurant, Partaking of short-orders, a gray, untidy, Toothless, discarded, rural Don Juan. . . . There is a mighty shade here who sings Of one named Beatrice; And I see now that the force that made him great Drove me to the dregs of life.