Spleen
I was not sorrowful, I could not weep,And all my memories were put to sleep.
I watched the river grow more white and strange,All day till evening I watched it change.
All day till evening I watched the rainBeat wearily upon the window pane.
I was not sorrowful, but only tiredOf everything that ever I desired.
Her lips, her eyes, all day became to meThe shadow of a shadow utterly.
All day mine hunger for her heart becameOblivion, until the evening came,
And left me sorrowful, inclined to weep,With all my memories that could not sleep.
Exceeding sorrowConsumeth my sad heart!Because to-morrowWe must depart,Now is exceeding sorrowAll my part!
Give over playing,Cast thy viol away:Merely layingThine head my way:Prithee, give over playing,Grave or gay.
Be no word spoken;Weep nothing: let a paleSilence, unbrokenSilence prevail!Prithee, be no word spoken,Lest I fail!
Forget to-morrow!Weep nothing: only layIn silent sorrowThine head my way:Let us forget to-morrow,This one day!
Ah, dans ces mornes séjoursLes jamais sont les toujours
You would have understood me, had you waited;I could have loved you, dear! as well as he:Had we not been impatient, dear! and fatedAlways to disagree.
What is the use of speech? Silence were fitter:Lest we should still be wishing things unsaid.Though all the words we ever spake were bitter,Shall I reproach you dead?
Nay, let this earth, your portion, likewise coverAll the old anger, setting us apart:Always, in all, in truth was I your lover;Always, I held your heart.
I have met other women who were tender,As you were cold, dear! with a grace as rare.Think you, I turned to them, or made surrender,I who had found you fair?
Had we been patient, dear! ah, had you waited,I had fought death for you, better than he:But from the very first, dear! we were fatedAlways to disagree.
Late, late, I come to you, now death disclosesLove that in life was not to be our part:On your low lying mound between the roses,Sadly I cast my heart.
I would not waken you: nay! this is fitter;Death and the darkness give you unto me;Here we who loved so, were so cold and bitter,Hardly can disagree.
Words in this poem
- wearily adv.
- In a weary manner.
- pane n.
- The narrow edge of a hammer head. See Peen. [F. panne.]
- oblivion n.
- The act of forgetting, or the state of being forgotten; cessation of remembrance; forgetfulness. [L. oblivio, akin to oblivisci to forget: cf. OF. oblivion.]
- depart v. i.
- To part; to divide; to separate. [OE. departen to divide, part, depart, F. départir to divide, distribute, se départir to separate one's self, depart; pref. dé- (L. de) + partir to part, depart,]
- prithee interj.
- A corruption of pray thee; as, I prithee; generally used without I.
- fitter n.
- A little piece; a flitter; a flinder.
- 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,]
- sadly adv.
- Wearily; heavily; firmly.
- waken v. i.
- To wake; to cease to sleep; to be awakened. [OE. waknen, AS. wæcnan; akin to Goth. gawaknan. See Wake, v. i.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Spleen is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems and Prose of Ernest Dowson, With a Memoir by Arthur Symons, Project Gutenberg ebook #8497; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Ernest Dowson, Spleen, in The Poems of Ernest Dowson (1896–1899), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #8497, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/dowson-poems/spleen.html, id L01634.
Form and metre
Spleen is 68 lines in 19 stanzas. The commonest rhyme scheme is ABAB, in 7 of the 19 stanzas; the rest vary or could not be confirmed. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%). 90% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.9 syllables. 29 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 26% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
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.
- 1 AA weepA · sleepA
- 2 AA strangeA · changeA
- 3 AA rainA · paneA
- 4 AA tiredA · desiredA
- 6 AA becameA · cameA
- 7 AA weepA · sleepA
- 8 ABABAB sorrowA · heartB · morrowA · departB · sorrowA · partB
- 9 ABABAB playingA · awayB · layingA · wayB · playingA · gayB
- 10 ABABAB spokenA · paleB · unbrokenA · prevailB · spokenA · failB
- 11 ABABAB morrowA · layB · sorrowA · wayB · morrowA · dayB
- 12 AA séjoursA · toujoursA
- 13 ABAB waitedA · heB · fatedA · disagreeB
- 14 ABAB fitterA · unsaidB · bitterA · deadB
- 15 ABAB coverA · apartB · loverA · heartB
- 16 ABAB tenderA · rareB · surrenderA · fairB
- 17 ABAB waitedA · heB · fatedA · disagreeB
- 18 ABAB disclosesA · partB · rosesA · heartB
- 19 ABAB fitterA · meB · bitterA · disagreeB
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 pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| I was not sorrowful, I could not weep, | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| And all my memories were put to sleep. | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| I watched the river grow more white and strange, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| All day till evening I watched it change. | 10 | ···/˘··˘·· |
| All day till evening I watched the rain | 10 | ···/˘··˘·· |
| Beat wearily upon the window pane. | 10 | ·/˘˘···/˘· |
| I was not sorrowful, but only tired | 11 | ···/˘˘·/˘/˘ |
| Of everything that ever I desired. | 11 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/˘ |
| Her lips, her eyes, all day became to me | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| The shadow of a shadow utterly. | 10 | ·/···/·/˘˘ |
| All day mine hunger for her heart became | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Oblivion, until the evening came, | 10 | ˘/˘˘···/˘· |
| And left me sorrowful, inclined to weep, | 10 | ···/˘˘˘/·· |
| With all my memories that could not sleep. | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| Exceeding sorrow | 5 | ˘/˘/˘ |
| Consumeth my sad heart! | 6 | ˘/˘··· |
| Because to-morrow | 5 | ···/˘ |
| We must depart, | 4 | ··˘/ |
| Now is exceeding sorrow | 7 | ··˘/˘/˘ |
| All my part! | 3 | ··· |
| Give over playing, | 5 | ···/˘ |
| Cast thy viol away: | 6 | ··/˘˘/ |
| Merely laying | 4 | /˘/˘ |
| Thine head my way: | 4 | ···· |
| Prithee, give over playing, | 7 | /˘···/˘ |
| Grave or gay. | 3 | ··· |
| Be no word spoken; | 5 | ···/˘ |
| Weep nothing: let a pale | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Silence, unbroken | 5 | /˘˘/˘ |
| Silence prevail! | 4 | /˘˘/ |
| Prithee, be no word spoken, | 7 | /˘···/˘ |
| Lest I fail! | 3 | ··· |
| Forget to-morrow! | 5 | ˘/·/˘ |
| Weep nothing: only lay | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| In silent sorrow | 5 | ·/˘/˘ |
| Thine head my way: | 4 | ···· |
| Let us forget to-morrow, | 7 | ··˘/·/˘ |
| This one day! | 3 | ··· |
| Ah, dans ces mornes séjours | 6 | ······ |
| Les jamais sont les toujours | 7 | ······· |
| You would have understood me, had you waited; | 11 | ····˘/···/˘ |
| I could have loved you, dear! as well as he: | 10 | ·········· |
| Had we not been impatient, dear! and fated | 11 | ····˘/˘··/˘ |
| Always to disagree. | 6 | /˘·˘˘/ |
| What is the use of speech? Silence were fitter: | 11 | ······/˘·/˘ |
| Lest we should still be wishing things unsaid. | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| Though all the words we ever spake were bitter, | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| Shall I reproach you dead? | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| Nay, let this earth, your portion, likewise cover | 11 | ·····/˘/·/˘ |
| All the old anger, setting us apart: | 10 | ···/˘/˘·˘/ |
| Always, in all, in truth was I your lover; | 11 | /········/˘ |
| Always, I held your heart. | 6 | /····· |
| I have met other women who were tender, | 11 | ···/˘/˘··/˘ |
| As you were cold, dear! with a grace as rare. | 10 | ·········· |
| Think you, I turned to them, or made surrender, | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| I who had found you fair? | 6 | ······ |
| Had we been patient, dear! ah, had you waited, | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| I had fought death for you, better than he: | 10 | ······/˘·· |
| But from the very first, dear! we were fated | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Always to disagree. | 6 | /˘·˘˘/ |
| Late, late, I come to you, now death discloses | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| Love that in life was not to be our part: | 10 | ········/· |
| On your low lying mound between the roses, | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Sadly I cast my heart. | 6 | /˘···· |
| I would not waken you: nay! this is fitter; | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Death and the darkness give you unto me; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Here we who loved so, were so cold and bitter, | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Hardly can disagree. | 6 | /˘·˘˘/ |
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.