VIRTUE, so hardly pursued by men, so glorious to possess, -- O Virgin Goddess, to die for thy beauty's sake or to endure, ravaged by unending hardship, in Greece is accounted great; so strong is the love of thee, subjecting the soul and holding it always. No gold is so precious, no gems, nor the richness of Sleep's melting eye. For thy sake Herakles, son to Zeus, for thy sake Leda's pair endured much labour, and in their deeds proclaimed thy mastery. For love of thee Achilles, Ajax, went both to the House of Death; and now for thee and thy beauty the Man of Atarneus has lost the sun's light. Therefore singers shall praise his works, and Muses, daughters of Memory, lift him to immortal life. They shall tell, with beauty of song, how Zeus the god of Hospitage was held in honour, and friendship, nobly given, stayed firm to the end. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...EPITAPH: IN OBITUM M.S. XO MAIJ, 1614 by WILLIAM BROWNE (1591-1643) THE LAMENTATION OF THE OLD PENSIONER (1) by WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS TO A REPUBLICAN FRIEND, 1848, CONTINUED by MATTHEW ARNOLD AFTER THE SOIREE by F. R. D. B. |