This poem asks “Who is that coming up from the wilderness, leaning on her beloved?” One character in this poem requests “Sustain me with raisins; / refresh me with apples, / for I am sick with love.” In a dreamlike passage from this poem, a character dithers over whether she should put on her coat and shoes to meet her lover, and is beaten by watchmen. A man in this poem says his lover’s teeth are a flock of sheep and her hair a flock of (*) goats; she in turn compares him to a gazelle. The plea to “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!” begins this poem. The “Shulamite” who narrates this poem says “I am black, but comely” and celebrates herself as “the rose of Sharon and the lily of the valleys.” For 10 points, name this poem attributed to a wise Biblical king. ■END■
ANSWER: “Song of Solomon” [or “Song of Songs”; or “Canticle of Canticles”; or Šīr hašŠīrīm]
<Benjamin McAvoy-Bickford, World Literature>
= Average correct buzz position