I WHY did I ever see those glorious eyes My famish'd soul to tantalize? I hop'd for Heav'n, which I had lately seen, But ne'er perceiv'd the gulf between: In vain for bliss did my presumptions seek, My love so strong I could not hold my tongue, My heart so feeble that I durst not speak. II. Yet why do I my constitution blame, Since all my heart is out of frame? 'Twere better, sure, my passion to appease, With hope to palliate my disease: And 'twill be something like tranquillity, To hope for that I must not compass yet, And make a virtue of necessity. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...DANIEL WEBSTER by OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES TO A LILY by JAMES MATHEWES LEGARE SOUND THE LOUD TIMBREL; MIRIAM'S SONG by THOMAS MOORE PROMETHEUS UNBOUND: THE RED SEA by AESCHYLUS THE SODA-WATER SLOT-MACHINE by BELLA AKHMADULINA |