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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


SONNET TO THE CURLEW by HELEN MARIA WILLIAMS

Poet Analysis

First Line: SOOTHED BY THE MURMURS ON THE SEA-BEAT SHORE
Last Line: AND SEEM THE SYMBOL OF MY PRESENT WOE.
Subject(s): BIRDS; CURLEWS; GRIEF; SORROW; SADNESS;

Soothed by the murmurs on the sea-beat shore,
His dun-gray plumage floating to the gale,
The Curlew blends his melancholy wail,
With those hoarse sounds the rushing waters pour --
Like thee, congenial bird! my steps explore
The bleak lone sea-breach, or the rocky dale,
And shun the orange bower, the myrtle vale,
Whose gay luxuriance suits my soul no more.
I love the ocean's broad expanse, when dressed
In limpid clearness, or when tempests blow;
When the smooth currents on its placid breast
Flow calm as my past moments used to flow;
Or, when its troubled waves refuse to rest,
And seem the symbol of my present woe.



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