Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, TO WILLIAM ROE, by BEN JONSON


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

TO WILLIAM ROE, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Roe (and my joy to name) thou art now, to go
Last Line: Came back untouched. This man hath travelled well.
Subject(s): Roe, William (b. 1585)


Roe (and my joy to name), thou art now to go,
Countries and climes, manners and men to know,
To extract, and choose the best of all these known,
And those to turn to blood and make thine own.
May winds as soft as breath of kissing friends
Attend thee hence, and there may all thy ends,
As the beginning here, prove purely sweet
And perfect in a circle always meet.
So when we, blessed with thy return, shall see
Thyself, with thy first thoughts, brought home by thee,
We each to other may this voice inspire:
This is that good Aeneas, passed through fire,
Through seas, storms, tempests; and embarked for hell,
Came back untouched. This man hath travelled well.







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