Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE DEATH OF THE GODS; AN ODE WRITTEN IN IMITATION OF PINDAR, by L. KER


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE DEATH OF THE GODS; AN ODE WRITTEN IN IMITATION OF PINDAR, by                    
First Line: I made the muses sick / by a new song
Last Line: Their power is gone, and my life is the token.
Subject(s): Goddesses & Gods; Muses; Mythology


I MADE the Muses sick
By a new song,
Not invoking their aid,
And their hearts were afraid!
They are dead, they are gone,
And I'll follow my blow;
The gods all anon,
From Jupiter down to his godship below,
Your poetical gods
Shall no longer survive;
At least it is odds
That they presently die,
If I am alive.
From the combat victorious returned,
The hero is Ker,
Who alone made the war;See, their names and their titles are burned.

Two made their escape,
I wonder they could;
So a party I raised,
They lay hid in a wood.
I was not so stupid
As not to know Cupid,
And Venus the fair,
Who lay lurking there:
They are dying, 'tis a pity,
But no more they see the city.
To finish the battle, I gave a command,
Not once to come in with a wish in their cause,
To the ladies of England: permission obtained,
The victory bloodless I easily gained:
But too late a petition has come to my hand,
To stop and to spare them in spite of the laws.
Sweet ladies of England, go, conquer without
Any charms but your own—there can scarce be a doubt
You will always be conquerors, conquest is sure:
Use but your own charms, and proceed by my rules,
Or your own better sense never taught in the schools.
The wounds you give now, since Apollo is dead,
Will certainly never admit of a cure.
O the nonsense of thinking Apollo could heal
By wisdom or art—No, your charms must prevail.
He none can assist even in writing a line,
I deny he's alive—and the poetry's mine.

The Conclusion

Thus end all the fabulous gods of all times,
And let who will deny—there is truth in my rhymes;
For, fool Superstition, thy charms are all broken:
Their power is gone, and my life is the token.





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