Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SONNET (2), by CHARLES TENNYSON TURNER


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SONNET (2), by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: O be thou keen to guess when flattery's near
Last Line: And many snares to steal ev'n that combine.
Subject(s): Flattery


O be thou keen to guess when Flattery's near!
His face is not the shadow of his heart:
The Court is all for lucre like the mart,
And fraught with perils that a king should fear --
Trust not the flatterer's hollow sympathy:
For should'st thou fathom that dishonest sound,
The line would rise with noisome clays hung round
And not the fruitful loam of love for thee:
O ill-starred royalty! Love's balmy sighs
Where Truth breathes on us from her sweetest shrine --
The access to all pure delights and ties --
Say are they less the peasant's lot than thine?
Beyond the shepherd's bliss thou canst not rise;
And many snares to steal ev'n that combine.






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