Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, TICHBORNE'S ELEGY, WRITTEN IN THE TOWER BEFORE HIS EXECUTION, by CHIDIOCK TICHBORNE


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

TICHBORNE'S ELEGY, WRITTEN IN THE TOWER BEFORE HIS EXECUTION, by         Recitation     Poem Explanation         Poet's Biography
First Line: My prime of youth is but a frost of cares
Last Line: And now I live, and now my life is done.
Alternate Author Name(s): Tychborn, Chidiock; Ticheborne, Chidiock
Variant Title(s): Retrospect;elegy;lines Written By One In The Tower;verses Written In The Tower;poem Written On The Eve Of Execution;elegy For Himself;lines Written In The Tower, The Night Before .. Execution
Subject(s): Adversity; Capital Punishment; Death; Mourning; Remorse; Self-pity; Hanging; Executions; Death Penalty; Dead, The; Bereavement


My prime of youth is but a frost of cares,
My feast of joy is but a dish of pain,
My crop of corn is but a field of tares,
And all my good is but vain hope of gain;
The day is past, and yet I saw no sun,
And now I live, and now my life is done.

My tale was heard and yet it was not told,
My fruit is fallen and yet my leaves are green,
My youth is spent and yet I am not old,
I saw the world and yet I was not seen;
My thread is cut and yet it is not spun,
And now I live, and now my life is done.

I sought my death and found it in my womb,
I looked for life and saw it was a shade,
I trod the earth and knew it was my tomb,
And now I die, and now I was but made;
The glass is full, and now my glass is run,
And now I live, and now my life is done.




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