Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, A NEW YEAR'S GIFT TO THE QUEEN, by THOMAS CAREW


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

A NEW YEAR'S GIFT TO THE QUEEN, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Thou great commandress, that dost move
Last Line: The water, earth, and air inspire.
Subject(s): Courts & Courtiers; Holidays; New Year; Royal Court Life; Royalty; Kings; Queens


THOU great Commandress, that dost move
Thy sceptre o'er the crown of Love,
And through his empire, with the awe
Of thy chaste beams, dost give the law;
From his profaner altars we
Turn to adore thy deity:
He only can wild lust provoke,
Thou those impurer flames canst choke;
And where he scatters looser fires,
Thou turn'st them into chaste desires.
His kingdom knows no rule but this:
Whatever pleaseth lawful is;
Thy sacred lore shows us the path
Of modesty and constant faith,
Which makes the rude male satisfi'd
With one fair female by his side;
Doth either sex to each unite,
And form Love's pure hermaphrodite.
To this thy faith, behold the wild
Satyr already reconcil'd,
Who from the influence of thine eye
Hath suck'd the deep divinity.
O free them then, that they may teach
The centaur and the horse-man preach
To beasts and birds, sweetly to rest
Each in his proper lair and nest;
They shall convey it to the flood,
Till there thy law be understood:
So shalt thou with thy pregnant fire
The water, earth, and air inspire.





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