From the Spanish
Diamante falso y fingido,Engastado en pedernal, &c.
"False diamond set in flint! the caverns of the mineAre warmer than the breast that holds that faithless heart of thine;Thou art fickle as the sea, thou art wandering as the wind,And the restless ever-mounting flame is not more hard to bind.If the tears I shed were tongues, yet all too few would beTo tell of all the treachery that thou hast shown to me.Oh! I could chide thee sharply--but every maiden knowsThat she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes.
"Thou hast called me oft the flower of all Grenada's maids,Thou hast said that by the side of me the first and fairest fades;And they thought thy heart was mine, and it seemed to every oneThat what thou didst to win my love, from love of me was done.Alas! if they but knew thee, as mine it is to know,They well might see another mark to which thine arrows go;But thou giv'st me little heed--for I speak to one who knowsThat she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes.
"It wearies me, mine enemy, that I must weep and bearWhat fills thy heart with triumph, and fills my own with care.Thou art leagued with those that hate me, and ah! thou know'st I feelThat cruel words as surely kill as sharpest blades of steel.'Twas the doubt that thou wert false that wrung my heart with pain;But, now I know thy perfidy, I shall be well again.I would proclaim thee as thou art--but every maiden knowsThat she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes."
Thus Fatima complained to the valiant Raduan,Where underneath the myrtles Alhambra's fountains ran:The Moor was inly moved, and blameless as he was,He took her white hand in his own, and pleaded thus his cause."Oh, lady, dry those star-like eyes--their dimness does me wrong;If my heart be made of flint, at least 'twill keep thy image long;Thou hast uttered cruel words--but I grieve the less for those,Since she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes."
Words in this poem
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
- didst
- , the 2d pers. sing. imp. of Do.
- perfidy n.
- The act of violating faith or allegiance; violation of a promise or vow, or of trust reposed; faithlessness; teachery. [L. perfidia, fr. L. perfidus faithless; per (cf. Skr. para away) + fides faith: cf. F. perfidie. See Faith.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- valiant a.
- Vigorous in body; strong; powerful; as, a valiant fencer. [OE. valiant, F. vaillant, OF. vaillant, valant, originally p. pr. of OF. & F. valoir to be worth, L. valere to be strong. See Wield, and cf. Avail, Convalesce, ]
- inly a.
- Internal; interior; secret. [OE. inlich, AS. inlic. See In.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
From the Spanish is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems by William Cullen Bryant, Project Gutenberg ebook #16341; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: William Cullen Bryant, From the Spanish, in Poems (1821–1876), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #16341, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bryant-poems/from-the-spanish.html, id L07329.
Form and metre
From the Spanish is 34 lines in 5 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is AABBCCDD, complete in 3 of its 5 stanzas. The metre is iambic heptameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 82%). 86% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 13.1 syllables. 24% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic heptameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 AABBCCDD mineA · thineA · windB · bindB · beC · meC · knowsD · goesD
- 3 AABBCCDD maidsA · fadesA · oneB · doneB · knowC · goC · knowsD · goesD
- 4 AABBCCDD bearA · careA · feelB · steelB · painC · againC · knowsD · goesD
- 5 --AABBCC raduan · ran · wasA · causeA · wrongB · longB · thoseC · goesC
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic heptameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Diamante falso y fingido, | 10 | ·˘/˘······ |
| Engastado en pedernal, &c. | 9 | ········· |
| "False diamond set in flint! the caverns of the mine | 12 | ·/˘····/˘··· |
| Are warmer than the breast that holds that faithless heart of thine; | 14 | ·/˘······/˘··· |
| Thou art fickle as the sea, thou art wandering as the wind, | 14 | ··/˘·····/˘··· |
| And the restless ever-mounting flame is not more hard to bind. | 14 | ··/˘//˘······· |
| If the tears I shed were tongues, yet all too few would be | 13 | ············· |
| To tell of all the treachery that thou hast shown to me. | 14 | ·····/˘˘······ |
| Oh! I could chide thee sharply--but every maiden knows | 14 | ·····/˘·/˘˘/˘· |
| That she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes. | 13 | ·····/˘˘/···· |
| "Thou hast called me oft the flower of all Grenada's maids, | 14 | ······/˘··˘/˘· |
| Thou hast said that by the side of me the first and fairest fades; | 15 | ············/˘· |
| And they thought thy heart was mine, and it seemed to every one | 14 | ···········/˘· |
| That what thou didst to win my love, from love of me was done. | 14 | ·············· |
| Alas! if they but knew thee, as mine it is to know, | 13 | ˘/··········· |
| They well might see another mark to which thine arrows go; | 14 | ····˘/˘····/˘· |
| But thou giv'st me little heed--for I speak to one who knows | 14 | ····/˘········ |
| That she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes. | 13 | ·····/˘˘/···· |
| "It wearies me, mine enemy, that I must weep and bear | 14 | ·/˘··/˘˘······ |
| What fills thy heart with triumph, and fills my own with care. | 13 | ·····/˘······ |
| Thou art leagued with those that hate me, and ah! thou know'st I feel | 14 | ·············· |
| That cruel words as surely kill as sharpest blades of steel. | 14 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘··· |
| 'Twas the doubt that thou wert false that wrung my heart with pain; | 13 | ············· |
| But, now I know thy perfidy, I shall be well again. | 14 | ·····/˘˘····˘/ |
| I would proclaim thee as thou art--but every maiden knows | 14 | ··˘/·····/˘/˘· |
| That she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes." | 13 | ·····/˘˘/···· |
| Thus Fatima complained to the valiant Raduan, | 13 | ·/˘˘˘/˘··/˘·· |
| Where underneath the myrtles Alhambra's fountains ran: | 13 | ··˘/·/˘˘/˘/˘· |
| The Moor was inly moved, and blameless as he was, | 13 | ···/˘·˘·/˘··· |
| He took her white hand in his own, and pleaded thus his cause. | 14 | ·········/˘··· |
| "Oh, lady, dry those star-like eyes--their dimness does me wrong; | 14 | ·/˘······/˘··· |
| If my heart be made of flint, at least 'twill keep thy image long; | 15 | ············/˘· |
| Thou hast uttered cruel words--but I grieve the less for those, | 14 | ··/˘/˘········ |
| Since she who chides her lover, forgives him ere he goes." | 13 | ·····/˘˘/···· |
On this poem
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.