Inscription for a Monument to the Memory of Cowper
Reader! if with no vulgar sympathyThou view'st the wreck of genius and of worth,Stay thou thy footsteps near this hallow'd spot.Here Cowper rests. Although renown have madeHis name familiar to thine ear, this stoneMay tell thee that his virtues were aboveThe common portion:--that the voice, now hush'dIn death, was once serenely querulousWith pity's tones, and in the ear of woeSpake music. Now, forgetful, at thy feet,His tired head presses on its last long rest,Still tenant of the tomb;--and on the cheek,Once warm with animation's lambent flush,Sits the pale image of unmark'd decay.Yet mourn not. He had chosen the better part;And, these sad garments of MortalityPut off, we trust, that to a happier landHe went a light and gladsome passenger.Sigh'st thou for honours, reader? Call to mindThat glory's voice is impotent to pierceThe silence of the tomb! but virtue bloomsEven on the wreck of life, and mounts the skies.So gird thy loins with lowliness, and walkWith Cowper on the pilgrimage of Christ.
Words in this poem
- serenely adv.
- In a serene manner; clearly.
- querulous a.
- Given to quarreling; quarrelsome. land. [L. querulus and querulosus, fr. queri to complain. Cf. Cry, v., Quarrel a brawl, Quarrelous.]
- forgetful a.
- Apt to forget; easily losing remembrance; as, a forgetful man should use helps to strengthen his memory.
- lambent a.
- Playing on the surface; touching lightly; gliding over. [L. lambens, -enlis, p. pr. of lambere to lick; akin to lap. See Lap to drink by licking.]
- mortality n.
- The condition or quality of being mortal; subjection to death or to the necessity of dying. [L. mortalitas: cf. F. mortalité.]
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- gladsome a.
- Pleased; joyful; cheerful.
- lowliness n.
- The state or quality of being lowly; humility; humbleness of mind. [From Lowly.]
- pilgrimage n.
- The journey of a pilgrim; a long journey; especially, a journey to a shrine or other sacred place. Fig., the journey of human life. [OE. pilgrimage, pelgrinage; cf. F. pèlerinage.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Inscription for a Monument to the Memory of Cowper is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of Henry Kirk White : With a Memoir by Sir Harris Nicolas, Project Gutenberg ebook #7149; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Kirke White, Inscription for a Monument to the Memory of Cowper, in The Poetical Works of Henry Kirke White (1803–1806), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #7149, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/kirke-white-poems/inscription-for-a-monument-to-the-memory-of-cowper.html, id L10067.
Form and metre
Inscription for a Monument to the Memory of Cowper is 24 lines in a single verse paragraph. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. 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 10.1 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 54% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter, other poems in blank verse.
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.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Reader! if with no vulgar sympathy | 10 | /˘···/˘/˘˘ |
| Thou view'st the wreck of genius and of worth, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Stay thou thy footsteps near this hallow'd spot. | 10 | ···/···/˘· |
| Here Cowper rests. Although renown have made | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| His name familiar to thine ear, this stone | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| May tell thee that his virtues were above | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The common portion:--that the voice, now hush'd | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| In death, was once serenely querulous | 11 | ····˘/˘˘/˘˘ |
| With pity's tones, and in the ear of woe | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Spake music. Now, forgetful, at thy feet, | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘··· |
| His tired head presses on its last long rest, | 10 | ·/·/˘····· |
| Still tenant of the tomb;--and on the cheek, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Once warm with animation's lambent flush, | 10 | ····˘/˘/˘· |
| Sits the pale image of unmark'd decay. | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘/ |
| Yet mourn not. He had chosen the better part; | 11 | ·····/˘·/˘· |
| And, these sad garments of Mortality | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘˘ |
| Put off, we trust, that to a happier land | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| He went a light and gladsome passenger. | 10 | ·····/˘/˘˘ |
| Sigh'st thou for honours, reader? Call to mind | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| That glory's voice is impotent to pierce | 10 | ·/˘··/˘˘·· |
| The silence of the tomb! but virtue blooms | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Even on the wreck of life, and mounts the skies. | 10 | /········· |
| So gird thy loins with lowliness, and walk | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| With Cowper on the pilgrimage of Christ. | 10 | ·/˘··/˘˘·· |
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