#john milton's sonnet 19

[minutia-r]

They also serve who only stand and wait

it was rly nice of level 20 caduceus to take a break from his modelling contract to come help fight the moon or whatever theyre doing in cr3

[chocolatteria]

[poems-from-around-the-world]

Sonnet 19 - John Milton - UK

When I consider how my light is spent,

   Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,

   And that one Talent which is death to hide

   Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent

To serve therewith my Maker, and present

   My true account, lest he returning chide;

   “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”

   I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent

That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need

   Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best

   Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state

Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed

   And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:

   They also serve who only stand and wait.”

[vivmaek]

POETRY FOR YOUR MOON SIGN

✰ my masterlist poems written by someone who has the same moon sign as you <3

☾PISCES☽

Edgar Allen Poe, A Dream Within a Dream

“Take this kiss upon the brow! / And, in parting from you now, / Thus much let me avow – / You are not wrong, who deem / That my days have been a dream; / Yet if hope has flown away / In a night, or in a day, / In a vision, or in none, / Is it therefore the less gone? / All that we see or seem / Is but a dream within a dream.”

June Jordan, You Came with Shells

“You came with shells. And left them: / shells. / They lay beautiful on the table. / Now they lie on my desk / peculiar / extraordinary under 60 watts.”

Toni Morrison, It Comes Unadorned

“it comes / Unadorned / Like a phrase / Strong enough to cast a spell; / It comes / Unbidden, / Like the turn of sun through hills / Or stars in wheels of song. / The jeweled feet of women dance the earth. / Arousing it to spring. / Shoulders broad as a road bend to share the weight of years. / Profiles breach the distance and lean / Toward an ordinary kiss. / Bliss. / it comes naked into the world like a charm.”

☾AQUARIUS☽

W.B Yeats, A Coat

“I made my song a coat / Covered with embroideries / Out of old mythologies / From heel to throat; / But the fools caught it, / Wore it in the world’s eyes / As though they’d wrought it. / Song, let them take it / For there’s more enterprise / In walking naked.”

W.B Yeats, The Lover Tells of the Roses in His Heart

“All things uncomely and broken, all things worn out and old, / The cry of a child by the roadway, the creak of a lumbering cart, / The heavy steps of the ploughman, splashing the wintry mould, / Are wronging your image that blossoms a rose in the deeps of my heart. / The wrong of unshapely things is a wrong too great to be told; I hunger to build them anew and sit on a green knoll apart, / With the earth and the sky and the water, re-made, like a casket of gold / For my dreams of your image that blossoms a rose in the deeps of my heart.”

Louisa May Alcott, The Lay of a Golden Goose

“Oh! Be not rash,” her father said, / A mild Socratic bird; / Her mother begged her not to stray / With many a warning word. / But little goosey was perverse / And eagerly did cry, / “I’ve got a lovely pair of wings, / Of course I Ought to fly.”

☾CAPRICORN☽

John Milton, Sonnet 19

“When I consider how my light is spent, / Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide, / And that one talent which is death to hide / Lodged with me useless, through my soul more bent / To serve therewith my Maker,”

Jala al-Din Rumi, The Guest House

“This being human is a guest house. / Every morning a new arrival. / A joy, a depression, a meanness, / some momentary awareness comes / As an unexpected visitor. / Welcome and entertain them all! / Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, / who violently sweep your house / empty of its furniture, / still treat each guest honorably. / He may be clearing you out / for some new delight. / The dark thought, the shame, the malice, / meet them at the door laughing, / and invite them in. / Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent / as a guide from beyond.”

Gwendolyn Brooks, a song in the front yard

“I’ve stayed in the front yard all my life. / I want a peek at the back / Where it’s rough and untended and hungry weed / grows. / A girl gets sick of a rose.”

☾SAGITTARIUS☽

Lewis Carroll, A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky

“In a Wonderland they lie, / Dreaming as the days go by, / Dreaming as the summers die: / Ever drifting down the stream – / Lingering in the golden gleam – / Life, what it is but a dream?”

Dante Alighieri, From “Inferno”

“It’s the pain / of the people down there that empties my / face. / It’s pity / that you’ve mistaken for fear. / And it’s the long way / that pushes us now. / Let’s go.”

Victor Hugo, Tomorrow, At Dawn

“Tomorrow, at dawn, at the hour when the countryside whitens, / I will set out. You see, I know that you wait for me. / I will go by the forest, I will go by the mountain. / I can no longer remain far from you. / I will walk with my eyes fixed on my thoughts, / Seeing nothing of outdoors, hearing no noise / Alone, unknown, my back curved, my hands crossed, / Sorrowed, and the day for me will be as night.”

☾SCORPIO☽

Sarojini Naid, Autumn Song

“Like a joy on the heart of a sorrow, / The sunset hangs on a cloud; / A golden storm of glittering sheaves, / Of fair and frail and fluttering leaves, / The wild wind blows in a cloud. / Hark to a voice that is calling / To my heart in the voice of the wind: / My heart is weary and sad and alone, / For its dreams like the fluttering leaves have gone, / And why should I stay behind?”

Shel Silverstein, Dreadful

“Someone ate the baby. / It’s absolutely clear / Someone ate the baby / ‘Cause the baby isn’t here. / We’ll give away her toys and clothes. / We’ll never have to wipe her nose. / Dad says, “That’s the way it goes.” / Someone ate the baby.”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Aftermath

“When the summer fields are mown, / When the birds are fledged and flown, / And the dry leaves strew the path; / With the falling of the snow, / With the cawing of the crow, / Once again the fields we mow / And gather in the aftermath.”

☾LIBRA☽

Maya Angelou, Caged Bird

“A free bird leaps / on the back of the wind / and floats downstream / till the current ends / and dips his wing / in the orange sun rays / and dares to claim the sky.”

Emily Dickinson, Good Morning – Midnight

“Good Morning – Midnight – / I’m coming Home – / Day – got tired of Me – / How could I – of Him? / Sunshine was a sweet place – / I liked to stay – / But Morn – didn’t want me – now – / So – Goodnight – Day!”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, My Heart and I

“You see we’re tired, my heart and I. / We dealt with books, we trusted men, / And in our own blood drenched the pen, / As is such colours could not fly. / We walked too straight for fortune’s end, / We loved too true to keep a friend ; / At last we’re tired, my heart and I.”

☾VIRGO☽

Robert Hayden, Those Winter Sundays

“Sundays too my father got up early / and put his clothes on in the blueback cold, / then with cracked hands that ached / from labor in the weekday weather made / banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him. / I’d wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking / When the rooms were warm, he’d call, / and slowly I would rise and dress, / fearing the chronic angers of that house, / Speaking indifferently to him , / who had driven out the cold / and polished my good shoes well. / What did I know, what did I know / of love's austere and lonely offices?”

Jack Kerouac, How to Meditate

“Thinking’s just like not thinking- / So I don't have to think / any / more”

William Faulkner, Study

“Muted dreams for them / for me / Bitter science. Exams are near / And my thoughts uncontrollably / Wander, and I cannot hear / The voice telling me that work I must, / For everything will be the same when I’m dead / A thousand years. I wish I were a bust / All head.”

☾LEO☽

Walt Whitman, I sing the Body Electric

“I sing the body electric, / The armies of those I love engirth me and I engirth them,”

Oscar Wilde, The Ballad of Reading Gaol

“Yet each man kills the thing he loves, / By each let this be heard, / Some do it with a bitter look, / Some with a flattering word, / The coward does it with a kiss, / The brave men with a sword!”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Friendship

“A ruddy drop of manly blood / The surging sea outweighs, / The world uncertain comes and goes; / The lover rooted stays. / I fancied he was fled, – / And, after many a year, / Glowed unexhausted kindliness, / Like daily sunrise there. / My careful heart was free again, / O friend, my bosom said, / Through thee alone the sky is arched, / Through thee the rose is red; / All things through thee take nobler form, / And look beyond the earth, / The mill-round of our fate appears / A sun-path in thy worth. / Me too thy nobleness had taught / To master my despair; / The fountains of my hidden life / Are through thy friendship fair.”

☾CANCER☽

Shakespear, Sonnet 147

“My love is as a fever, longing still / For that which longer nurseth the disease, / Feeding on that which doth preserve the ill,”

Robert Frost, Acquainted with the Night

“I have been one acquainted with the night. / I have walked out in rain – and back in rain. / I have outwalked the furthest city light. / I have looked down the saddest city lane. / I have passed by the watchman on his beat / And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain. / I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet / When far away an interrupted cry / Came over houses from another street, / But not to call me back or say good-bye; / And further still at an unearthly height, / One luminary clock against the sky / Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right. / I have been one acquainted with the night.”

William Blake, Auguries of innocence

“To see a World in a Grain of Sand / And a Heaven in a wild flower / Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand / And eternity in an hour”

☾GEMINI☽

Rudyard Kipling, Blue Roses

“Half the world I wandered through, / Seeking where such flowers grew. / Half the world unto my quest / Answered me with laugh and jest. / Home I came at wintertide, / But my silly love had died / Seeking with her latest breath / Roses from the arms of Death.”

John Keats, To Sleep

“Save me from curious Conscience, that still lords / Its strength for darkness, burrowing like a mole; / Turn the key deftly into the oiled wards, / And seal the hushed Casket of my soul.”

Lord Tennyson, The Eagle

“He clasps the crag with crooked hands; Close to the sun in lonely lands, / Ring’d with the azure world, he stands. / The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls; / He watches from his mountain walls, / And like thunderbolt he falls.”

☾TAURUS☽

John Donne, Air and Angels

“Twice or thrice had I lov’d thee, / Before I knew thy face or name; / So in a voice, so in a shapeless flame / Angels affects us oft, and worshipp’d be;”

Audre Lorde, Recreation

“my body / writes into your flesh / the poem / you make of me. / Touching you I catch midnight / as moon fires set in my throat / I love you flesh into blossom / I made you / and take you made / into me.”

Margaret Walker, Lineage

“My grandmothers were strong. / They followed plows and bent to toil. / They moved through fields sowing seed. / They touched earth and grain grew. / They were full of sturdiness and singing. / My grandmothers were strong. / My grandmothers are full of memories / Smelling of soap and onions and wet clay / With veins rolling roughly over quick hands / They have many clean words to say. / My grandmothers were strong. / Why am I not as they?”

☾ARIES☽

E.E Cummings, Love is more thicker than forget

“love is more thicker than forget / more thinner than recall / more seldom than a wave is wet / more frequent than to fail”

Mark Twain, Genius

“But above all things, / to deftly throw the incoherent ravings of insanity into verse / and then rush off and get booming drunk, / is the surest of all the different signs / of genius.”

Paul Laurence Dunbar, Ships that Pass in the Night

“Out in the sky the great dark clouds are massing; / I look far out into the pregnant night, / Where I can hear a solemn booming gun / And I catch the gleaming of a random light, / That tells me that the ship I seek is passing, passing.”

[adventuresofalgy]

It has recently come to Algy's attention – and of course he is aware that he should have thought of this long, long ago – that some of the kind friends who follow his adventures do not see the colourful autumn landscapes of the wild west Highlands of Scotland in the same way as other followers. Algy realised that this environment, so rich in an array of varying russets, reds and greens, must look very different to friends with an alternative kind of vision.

So Algy requested his assistant to present his latest adventure without the use of colour, although he did stipulate just one special exception 😀 (And he reports that his assistant found that it was a considerable challenge which greatly enhanced her appreciation of photographers who work in black and white, especially with a subject so rich in the small details of vegetation!)

As he rested pensively on the banks of the trickling burn, Algy began to think in more detail about how his adventures might be viewed and, knowing that quite a few of his friends were a wee bit past their first youth, he understood that the question of sight in general might well be an issue for some. Of course the challenges that deteriorating or impaired eyesight present are entirely different from the condition of colourblindness, but nevertheless raised questions in Algy's mind about what his different friends might actually see in the photographic records of his adventures.

So for all those friends who see colour in a different way, Algy has persuaded his assistant to produce this alternative photographic rendition of his local landscape today.

And for those friends whose vision overall may be limited, problematic, or a serious concern for the future, he offers this famous poem from several centuries ago, although he is quite sure that most will remain determined to do far more than just stand and wait 😀

When I consider how my light is spent,    Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,    And that one Talent which is death to hide    Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present    My true account, lest he returning chide;    “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”    I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need    Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best    Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed    And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:    They also serve who only stand and wait.”

[Algy is quoting Sonnet 19: When I consider how my light is spent by the 17th century English poet John Milton.]

[littleliongirl16]

cw for weapons (badly drawn futuristic laser gun), religious language, and internalized ableism (but in a nice not listening to the internalized ableism way)

Penumbra Podcast s3 spoilers

Hi I am back at drawing my favorite characters with old poetry! Juno Steel (and a bit of Buddy Aurinko) with When I Consider/Sonnet 19 by John Milton :3

link to the previous "old poetry from a class I took with drawings of a character I like": https://www.tumblr.com/littleliongirl16/738094169623592960/ode-on-a-grecian-urn-by-john-keats-poetry?source=share

[bookshelfmonkey]

October reading wrap-up

A Memory Called Empire- Arkady Martine- 2/10/23- 10/10 A really exciting and original sci-fi novel. I never wanted to put it down.

Last Night At the Telegraph Club- Malinda Lo- 2/10/23- 8/10 Very emotional and well-written.

American Sonnets For My Past & Future Assassin- Terrance Hayes- 4/10/23- 8/10 Reminded me why I love contemporary poetry.

The Seige of Macindaw- John Flanagan- 6/10/23- 10/10 Exciting and fast-paced. John Flanagan really knows how to write battle scenes. Also pretty good disability rep.

Antigone- Jean Anhouilh- 6/10/23- 8/10 Most retellings wish they could be this: true to the original but relevant to contemporary context as well as being genuinely interesting to read.

The School For Scandal- Richard Brinsley Sheridan- 6/10/23- 4/10 Oscar Wilde if he wasn't funny.

How to Break a Dragon's Heart- Cressida Cowell- 7/10/23- 10/10 Things got darker in this book and honestly Cressida Cowell manages it so well. Oh, the eternal optimism of youth.

The Witch King- H.E. Edgmon- 9/10/23- 10/10 A solid chunk of this book was just the MC being absolutely dedicated to fucking shit up and I was so here for it. Then things got a little more messy and emotionally complicated and I was also so there for that.

How to Steal a Dragon's Sword- Cressida Cowell- 10/10/23- 10/10 This book breaks my heart in the best way possible.

The Odyssey- Homer (trans. Emily Wilson)- 13/10/23- 8/10 I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did.

The Echo Wife- Sarah Gailey- 15/10/23- 8/10 Lots of plot twists, some emotional fuckery, generally pretty thrilling. I just wish it had explored the mental side of it a bit more.

Frankenstein- Mary Shelley- 15/10/23- 8/10 It was over for me the moment I started empathising with the creature.

The Kings of Clonmel- John Flanagan- 19/10/23- 10/10 I'm shocked that John Flanagan hadn't run out of ideas by this point, but evidently he hadn't because this book was just as fun and exciting as the ones before it. Also we got some Halt backstory which is always fun.

A Raisin In the Sun- Lorraine Hansberry- 26/10/23- 7/10

The Two Towers- J.R.R. Tolkein- 29/10/23- 8/10 The pace actually picked up in this one and I started to see why people like this series so much.

Inferno- Dante Alighieri- 29/10/23- 7/10 This is just self insert fanfiction that Dante managed to convince us was a classic. He's so real for that.

Paradise Lost- John Milton- 29/10/23- 5/10

[poemshubs]

Are There Sonnets of Dark Love?

Sonnets have long been associated with themes of love, beauty, and romance. Traditionally, these 14-line poetic forms are celebrated for their ability to explore the subtleties and complexities of love in a structured and lyrical manner. However, not all  sonnets are dedicated to the light and joyous aspects of love. Some delve into the more shadowy, complex, and often unsettling dimensions of romantic relationships. This article explores the presence of “dark love” in sonnets, examining how poets use this form to convey themes of anguish, despair, obsession, and forbidden passion.

The Nature of Dark Love

Defining Dark Love

Dark love refers to the exploration of love’s more negative or troubling aspects. This can include themes such as unrequited love, destructive relationships, betrayal, or intense emotional turmoil. Unlike traditional romantic sonnets, which often celebrate the beauty and idealism of love, dark love sonnets confront the darker, more uncomfortable sides of human emotions and relationships.

Historical Context

Throughout literary history, the portrayal of dark love has been a recurring theme. While the classical sonnet form was often used to explore idealized love, poets have also employed it to address the more painful and disturbing aspects of romantic relationships. This exploration can be traced back to early poets and has evolved through various literary movements.

The Structure of  the Sonnet

Traditional Sonnet Forms

The sonnet is a highly structured form of poetry, traditionally consisting of 14 lines written in iambic pentameter. There are several types of sonnets, including the Shakespearean (or English) sonnet and the Petrarchan (or Italian) sonnet. Each form has its own specific rhyme scheme and structural conventions.

Shakespearean Sonnet: This form consists of three quatrains followed by a final couplet, with a rhyme scheme of ABABCDCDEFEFGG. The Shakespearean sonnet often explores complex themes within its structured format, allowing for a progression of thought and a resolution in the final couplet.

Petrarchan Sonnet: This form is divided into an octave and a sestet, with a rhyme scheme of ABBAABBACDCDCD or CDECDE. The Petrarchan sonnet typically presents a problem or situation in the octave, which is then resolved or reflected upon in the sestet.

Adapting the Sonnet for Dark Themes

The structured nature of the sonnet allows poets to explore dark themes with a sense of order and formality. The constraints of the form can enhance the emotional impact of the poem, as the poet must carefully select words and phrases to fit within the rigid structure. This constraint can create a powerful contrast between the form’s elegance and the darkness of the content.

Notable Examples of Dark Love Sonnets

William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 30

William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 30, also known as “When to the sessions of sweet silent thought,” is a prime example of a sonnet that delves into the darker aspects of love and memory. The poem reflects on the speaker’s emotional suffering and sense of loss.

In Sonnet 30, Shakespeare explores themes of grief, regret, and the passage of time. The speaker recalls past sorrows and injustices, which have compounded his pain. The sonnet ultimately finds a glimmer of solace in the enduring nature of love, even amidst personal anguish.

John Milton’s Sonnet 19

John Milton’s Sonnet 19, “When I consider how my light is spent,” addresses the theme of personal suffering and loss in the context of a spiritual and existential crisis. While not explicitly a love poem, the sonnet’s exploration of loss and darkness can be seen as an indirect reflection on the concept of dark love, especially when viewed through the lens of Milton’s own struggles with blindness and personal grief.

Edna St. Vincent Millay’s “What Lips My Lips Have Kissed”

Edna St. Vincent Millay’s sonnet “What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, and Where, and Why” examines themes of loneliness and lost love. The poem reflects on the fleeting nature of romantic relationships and the sense of emptiness that can follow the end of passionate affairs.

Millay’s sonnet is characterized by its melancholic tone and introspective nature. The speaker laments the loss of past lovers and the emptiness that remains, capturing the essence of dark love through the lens of regret and disillusionment.

Thematic Exploration in Dark Love Sonnets

Unrequited Love

Unrequited love, where one person’s feelings are not reciprocated, is a common theme in dark love  sonnets. This type of love can lead to feelings of despair, longing, and emotional pain. Poets use the sonnet form to explore the intensity of these emotions and the impact they have on the individual.

Destructive Relationships

Sonnets that address destructive or toxic relationships often delve into themes of betrayal, manipulation, and emotional damage. These poems can reveal the complex dynamics of unhealthy relationships and the profound effects they have on those involved.

Obsession and Forbidden Love

Obsession and forbidden love are other aspects of dark love that poets may explore in sonnets. These themes often involve intense emotional or psychological states, where the speaker’s feelings are all-consuming and potentially harmful. The sonnet form can capture the intensity and complexity of these experiences.

The Impact of Dark Love Sonnets

Emotional Resonance

Dark love sonnets can have a powerful emotional impact on readers. By confronting the more troubling aspects of love, these poems can evoke a deep sense of empathy and understanding. The exploration of pain and suffering in a structured poetic form allows readers to connect with the speaker’s experiences on a profound level.

Expanding  the Sonnet Tradition

The incorporation of dark love themes into the sonnet form demonstrates the adaptability and versatility of the genre. By exploring unconventional or challenging subjects, poets expand the boundaries of the sonnet tradition and contribute to its ongoing evolution.

Reflecting Human Experience

Dark love sonnets reflect the complexities of human experience and emotion. They offer a means of exploring and articulating the more difficult aspects of love and relationships, providing insight into the range of human emotions and the impact of personal struggles.

Conclusion

Sonnets of dark love reveal the rich and multifaceted nature of human emotions and relationships. Through the structured elegance of the sonnet form, poets explore themes of unrequited love, destructive relationships, obsession, and forbidden passion. These poems capture the intensity and complexity of dark love, offering readers a means of connecting with and understanding the more challenging aspects of romantic experience.

While the sonnet form has traditionally been associated with idealized and romantic themes, the exploration of dark love demonstrates its versatility and enduring relevance. By addressing the darker sides of love and relationships, poets contribute to a broader and more nuanced understanding of the human condition. The continued examination of dark love in sonnets ensures that this poetic tradition remains a vital and dynamic form of artistic expression.

[holly-ledru]

Cupid is blind; the reason why is this -

Love loveth most when love most secret is.

Sonnet 19 by John Milton

When I consider how my light is spent,

 Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,

   And that one Talent which is death to hide

   Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent

To serve therewith my Maker, and present

   My true account, lest he returning chide;

   “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”

   I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent

That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need

   Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best

   Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state

Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed

   And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:

   They also serve who only stand and wait.”

[chattering-magpie-uk]

John Milton - When I consider how my light is spent (Sonnet 19)

When I consider how my light is spent,    Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,    And that one Talent which is death to hide    Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present    My true account, lest he returning chide;    “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”    I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent That murmur, soon replies,…

[markwatsonsbooks]

#Amreading#Newrelease: 150 Most Famous Poems: Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, William Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman and many more by Poetry House Welcome to the most comprehensive compilation of classic English poetry in a single volume.

Explore a world of timeless verse featuring the most famous English poems ever written, all within the pages of this remarkable poetry book. If you're seeking a literary treasure that encompasses centuries of poetic excellence, you've found it. This poetry book comes in a generous 8x10-inch format, perfect for poetry lovers, literature students, and teachers or as an impressive addition to your collection.

The following 30 poems are a selection from the book's contents:

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

O Captain! My Captain! by Walt Whitman

Hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson

The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe

I carry your heart with me by E.E. Cummings

I like for you to be still by Pablo Neruda

All the world's a stage by William Shakespeare

Ode On A Grecian Urn by John Keats

Ode To The West Wind by Percy Bysshe Shelley

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot

My Last Duchess by Robert Browning

Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening by Robert Frost

Thanatopsis by William Cullen Bryant

A Red, Red Rose by Robert Burns

She Walks In Beauty by George Gordon Byron

Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Because I could not stop for Death by Emily Dickinson

Holy Sonnet: 10 by John Donne

A friend’s greeting by Edgar Albert Guest

Elegy Written In A Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray

Abou Ben Adhem by James Henry Leigh Hunt

If – by Rudyard Kipling

Recessional by Rudyard Kipling

Sonnet: 19. On His Blindness by John Milton

Poetry by Marianne Moore

Here I love you by Pablo Neruda

Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe

Sonnet: 116 by William Shakespeare

Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Crossing The Bar by Alfred Tennyson

This remarkable English Poetry Anthology is a treasury of 150 of the Most Famous Poems spanning the centuries, from the enchanting verses of the Middle Ages to the timeless elegance of the 20th century. These celebrated poems stand as enduring masterpieces of English Literature, their profound words inspiring and resonating with people from every corner of the globe. This version has been updated and revised as of October 2023.

Order YOUR Copy NOW: https://amzn.to/45AVvAV via @amazon

[poetryfoundation-potd]

Sonnet 19: When I consider how my light is spent

By John Milton

When I consider how my light is spent,

   Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,

   And that one Talent which is death to hide

   Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent

To serve therewith my Maker, and present

   My true account, lest he returning chide;

   “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”

   I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent

That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need

   Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best

   Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state

Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed

   And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:

   They also serve who only stand and wait.”

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44750/sonnet-19-when-i-consider-how-my-light-is-spent

No audio available

[drfaustus]

john milton’s poetry conveys the age old feeling of constantly convincing yourself that you’re a failure and let down at every stage of your life

[itspileofgoodthings]

[rank-sentimentalist]

Milton: When I consider how my light is spent

Sonnet 19: When I consider how my light is spent

John Milton

 When I consider how my light is spent,

   Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,

   And that one Talent which is death to hide

   Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent

To serve therewith my Maker, and present

   My true account, lest he returning chide;

   “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”

   I fondly ask. But patience, to prevent

That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need

   Either man’s work or his own gifts; who best

   Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state

Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed

   And post o’er Land and Ocean without rest:

   They also serve who only stand and wait.”

[even-love-unreturned]

Meanings behind Chain of Iron chapter titles (part II, Ch16-29)

16. Dark Breaks to Dawn

Likely from another Dante Gabriel Rossetti poem, “Found”, a companion to his painting of the same name. It was published in 1881 in his volume Ballads and Sonnets.

“There is a budding morrow in midnight:”— So sang our Keats, our English nightingale. And here, as lamps across the bridge turn pale In London's smokeless resurrection-light, Dark breaks to dawn. But o'er the deadly blight Of Love deflowered and sorrow of none avail, Which makes this man gasp and this woman quail, Can day from darkness ever again take flight?

17. Prophet of Evil

In “The Raven”, Edgar Allen Poe calls the raven a “Prophet” and a “thing of evil”.

In the Iliad, Cachas the seer/prophet is called a “Prophet/seer of evil”:

To Calchas first of all he spoke, and his look threatened evil: “Prophet of evil, never yet have you spoken to me a pleasant thing; ever is evil dear to your heart to prophesy, but a word of good you have never yet spoken, nor brought to pass. […]”

I don’t think either of these two are the reference used here though.

18. Goblin Market

This title is clearly from the poem “Goblin Market” written by Christina Rossetti in 1859, a tale of two sisters tempted by magical and dangerous fruit sold by goblins. According to some analyses, the poem might read as an allegory of addiction and recovery. (This poem has also been quoted in chapter 6 of CA)

19. Thine Own Palace

From one of John Donne’s verse letters to Sir Henry Wotton beginning “Sir, more than kisses, letters mingle souls”:

“Be then thine own home, and in thyself dwell; Inn anywhere; continuance maketh hell. And seeing the snail which everywhere doth roam, Carrying his own house still, still is at home, Follow (for he is easy paced) this snail, Be thine own palace, or the world's thy jail.”

20. Equal Temper

From the poem “Ulysses” written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson in 1833.

Though much is taken, much abides; and though We are not now that strength which in old days Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are, One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

21. Hell’s Own Track

From another Christina Rossetti poem, “Amor Mundi”, published in 1865.

“Turn again, O my sweetest,—turn again, false and fleetest:  This beaten way thou beatest I fear is hell’s own track.” “Nay, too steep for hill-mounting; nay, too late for cost-counting:  This downhill path is easy, but there’s no turning back.”

22. Heart of Iron

Perhaps from “The Belfry of Bruges” (1866) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

At my feet the city slumbered.  From its chimneys, here and there, Wreaths of snow-white smoke, ascending, vanished, ghost-like, into air.

Not a sound rose from the city at that early morning hour, But I heard a heart of iron beating in the ancient tower.

23. Silken Thread

Possibly from the poem attributed under its first line “O Lady, leave thy silken thread” by Thomas Hood.

O lady, leave thy silken thread And flowery tapestrie: There's living roses on the bush, And blossoms on the tree; Stoop where thou wilt, thy careless hand Some random bud will meet; Thou canst not tread, but thou wilt find The daisy at thy feet.

24. He Shall Rise

This is either a biblical passage, or from Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “The Kraken”, first published in 1830.

There hath he lain for ages, and will lie
Battening upon huge sea worms in his sleep,
Until the latter fire shall heat the deep;
Then once by man and angels to be seen,
In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die.

25. Archangel Ruined

Finally we have Cassie’s obligatory Paradise Lost reference in every book!

[…] He, above the rest In shape and gesture proudly eminent,⁠ Stood like a tower; his form had yet not lost All her original brightness, nor appeared Less than Archangel ruined, and the excess Of glory obscured. […]

- Paradise Lost, Book I (1674), John Milton

26. Older Than Gods

The only thing I can find for the exact phrase “older than gods” is something from the play The Birds by Aristophanes, performed 414 BCE, in which characters argue that if birds are older than earth and therefore “older than gods”, then the birds are the heirs of the world, for the oldest always inherits. Somehow I don’t. Think that’s the reference used here ajskfkd.

Then, there’s a line that goes “older than all ye gods” in Algernon Charles Swinburne’s poem, “Hymn to Proserpine (After the Proclamation in Rome of the Christian Faith)”:

Will ye bridle the deep sea with reins, will ye chasten the high sea with rods?/Will ye take her to chain her with chains, who is older than all ye Gods?

27. Wake With Wings

From another poem relating to Prosepine (which is one of the Latin names for Persephone) “The Garden of Proserpine” (1866) by Algernon Charles Swinburne.

Though one were strong as seven, He too with death shall dwell, Nor wake with wings in heaven, Nor weep for pains in hell; Though one were fair as roses, His beauty clouds and closes; And well though love reposes, In the end it is not well.

28. No Wise Man

Possibly from the famous quote, written by Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) in essay: “No wise man ever wished to be younger.” But I doubt it, considering all the other references are of poems and verse.

29. A Broken Mirror

Possibly from poem XXXIII in the long narrative poem “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage” by Lord Byron, published between 1812-1818. The wikipedia description has it as: “it describes the travels and reflections of a world-weary young man, who is disillusioned with a life of pleasure and revelry and looks for distraction in foreign lands.”

Even as a broken mirror, which the glass In every fragment multiplies; and makes A thousand images of one that was, The same, and still the more, the more it breaks; And thus the heart will do which not forsakes, Living in shatter'd guise, and still, and cold, And bloodless, with its sleepless sorrow aches, Yet withers on till all without is old, Showing no visible sign, for such things are untold.

Part 1 (chapters 1-15) here.