Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, STELLA'S BIRTHDAY, 1718, by JONATHAN SWIFT



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

STELLA'S BIRTHDAY, 1718, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: Stella this day is thirty-four
Last Line: To split my worship too in twain.
Variant Title(s): On Stella's Birthday
Subject(s): Aging; Johnson, Esther (1681-1728); Love; Middle Age


STELLA this day is thirty-four,
(We shan't dispute a year or more:)
However, Stella, be not troubled;
Although thy size and years are doubled
Since first I saw thee at sixteen,
The brightest virgin on the green;
So little is thy form declined;
Made up so largely in thy mind.

O, would it please the gods to split
Thy beauty, size, and years, and wit!
No age could furnish out a pair
Of nymphs so graceful, wise, and fair;
With half the lustre of your eyes,
With half your wit, your years, and size.
And then, before it grew too late,
How should I beg of gentle fate
(That either nymph might have her swain)
To split my worship too in twain.





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