Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, ADDRESS TO FANCY, by FELICIA DOROTHEA HEMANS


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

ADDRESS TO FANCY, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Oh, queen of dreams! 'tis now the hour
Last Line: To view the wonders of thy fairy clime!
Alternate Author Name(s): Browne, Felicia Dorothea
Subject(s): Imagination; Fancy


OH, queen of dreams! 'tis now the hour,
Thy fav'rite hour of silence and of sleep;
Come, bring thy wand, whose magicpower
Can wake the troubled spirits of the deep!

And while around on every eye
The "honey-dews of slumber" lie,
Oh! guide me to the wild retreat,
Where fays in nightly revel meet;
And gaily sport in mystic ring,
By lonely glen or haunted spring!

Now every sound has died away,
The winds and waves are lulled to rest;
The sighing breeze forgets to play,
And moonbeams tremble o'er the ocean's breast --

Come, Fancy! come, creative power!
That lov'st the tranquil reign of night:
Perhaps in such a silent hour,
Thy visions charmed the bard of Avon's sight;
Oh, poet blest! thy guiding hand
Led him through scenes of fairyland;
To him, thy favoured child, alone,
Thy bright, Elysian worlds were shown!

Come Fancy! come; with loved control,
Bewitch thy votary's pensive soul.
Come, sportive charmer! lovely maid!
In rainbow-coloured vest arrayed,
Invoke thy visionary train,
The subjects of thy gentle reign.

If e'er ethereal spirits meet
On earth, to pour their dirges sweet;
Now might they hover on the moonbeam pale,
And breathe celestial music on the gale.
And hark! from yonder distant dell,
I hear angelic numbers swell!
Ah! sure some airy sylph is nigh,
To wake such heavenly melody!
Now soft the dulcet notes decay,
Float on the breeze and melt away;
Again they fall -- again they rise,
Ah, now the soft enchantment dies!
The charm is o'er, the spell is past,
The witching spell, too sweet to last!

Hail, Fancy, hail! around thy hallowed shrine,
What sylphid bands, what radiant forms appear!
Ah! bless thy votary with thy dreams divine,
Ah! wave thy wand, and call thy visions dear!

Bear me, oh! bear me, to thy realms unknown,
Enchantress! waft me in thy car sublime!
To bend, entranced, before thy shadowy throne,
To view the wonders of thy fairy clime!





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