The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ

E560221

"The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ" is a famous quatrain from Edward FitzGerald’s translation of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, often quoted for its reflection on the irreversibility of time and human actions.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ canonical 2

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (40)

Predicate Object
instanceOf poetic line ⓘ
quotation ⓘ
author Omar Khayyam ⓘ
countryOfTranslation United Kingdom ⓘ
culturalImpact frequently cited in discussions of fatalism ⓘ
widely quoted in English-speaking world ⓘ
followedBy "Moves on; nor all your Piety nor Wit" ⓘ
"Nor all your Tears wash out a Word of it" ⓘ
"Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line" ⓘ
form quatrain line ⓘ
genre didactic poetry ⓘ
philosophical poetry ⓘ
influenced popular conceptions of fate and time in modern culture ⓘ
language English ⓘ
literaryDevice metaphor ⓘ
literaryPeriod Victorian literature (English translation context) ⓘ
metaphorFor destiny ⓘ
record of human life ⓘ
time ⓘ
meter iambic pentameter (approximate) ⓘ
notableFor concise expression of the impossibility of undoing the past ⓘ
openingWords The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ ⓘ
originalLanguage Persian ⓘ
originalWorkTitle Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám ⓘ
partOf Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám (FitzGerald translation) ⓘ
positionInWork opening line of a quatrain ⓘ
quotationType aphorism ⓘ
maxim ⓘ
subjectOf literary criticism ⓘ
philosophical commentary ⓘ
theme determinism ⓘ
fate ⓘ
finality of human actions ⓘ
human powerlessness to alter the past ⓘ
irreversibility of time ⓘ
regret ⓘ
translator Edward FitzGerald ⓘ
usedAs epigraph in literary works ⓘ
proverbial saying about the past ⓘ
workDate 1859 (first FitzGerald edition) ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam → notableQuatrain → The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ ⓘ
"The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ" → openingWords → The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ ⓘ