Classic and Contemporary Poetry
WRITTEN BY THE BARROW SIDE, WHERE SHE WAS SENT TO WASH LINEN, by ELLEN TAYLOR First Line: Thy banks, o barrow, sure must be Last Line: Yes, then I'd hope for peace. Subject(s): Barrow, River, Ireland | ||||||||
THY banks, O Barrow, sure must be The Muses' choicest haunt, Else why so pleasing thus to me, Else why my soul enchant? To view thy dimpled surface here, Fond fancy bids me stay; But Servitude, with brow austere, Commands me straight away. Were Lethe's virtues in thy stream, How freely would I drink, That not so much as on the name Of books I e'er might think. I can but from them learn to know What misery's complete, And feel more sensibly each blow Dealt by relentless fate. In them I oft have pleasure found, But now it's all quite fled. With fluttering heart, I lay me down, And rise with aching head. For such a turn ill suits the sphere Of life in which I move, And rather does a load of care Than any comfort prove. Thrice happy she, condemned to move Beneath the servile weight, Whose thoughts ne'er soar one inch above The standard of her fate. But far more happy is the soul, Who feels the pleasing sense; And can indulge without control Each thought that flows from thence. Since naught of these my portion is, But the reverse of each, That I shall taste but little bliss, Experience doth me teach. Could cold insensibility Through my whole frame take place, Sure then from grief I might be free: Yes, then I'd hope for peace. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...TO-MORROW TO FRESH WOODS AND PASTURES NEW' by AMY LOWELL CHRIST'S KINGDOM AMONG THE GENTILES by ISAAC WATTS LAURENCE BLOOMFIELD IN IRELAND: 7. MIDSUMMER by WILLIAM ALLINGHAM ARCHEANASSA by ASCLEPIADES OF SAMOS EMBLEMS OF LOVE: 37. LOVE'S MY POLE-STAR by PHILIP AYRES |
|