Impartiality
I cannot say a scene is fairBecause it is beloved of thee,But I shall love to linger there,For sake of thy dear memory;I would not be so coldly justAs to love only what I must.
I cannot say a thought is goodBecause thou foundest joy in it;Each soul must choose its proper foodWhich Nature hath decreed most fit;But I shall ever deem it soBecause it made thy heart o'erflow.
I love thee for that thou art fair;And that thy spirit joys in aughtCreateth a new beauty there,With thine own dearest image fraught;And love, for others' sake that springs,Gives half their charm to lovely things.
Words in this poem
- 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,]
- coldly adv.
- In a cold manner; without warmth, animation, or feeling; with indifference; calmly.
- deem v. t.
- To decide; to judge; to sentence; to condemn. [OE. demen to judge, condemn, AS. d, fr. d doom; akin to OFries. d, OS. ad, D. doemen, OHG. tuommen, Icel. dæma, Sw. dömma, Dan. dömme, Goth. d. See Doom, n., an]
- aught n.
- Property; possession. [AS. , fr. agan to own, p. p. ahte.]
- fraught n.
- A freight; a cargo. [OE.fraight, fraght; akin to Dan. fragt, Sw. frakt, D. vracht, G. fracht, cf. OHG. fr merit, reward; perh. from corresponding to E. for + The root of E. own. Cf.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Impartiality is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems of James Russell Lowell With biographical sketch by Nathan Haskell Dole, Project Gutenberg ebook #38520; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: James Russell Lowell, Impartiality, in Poems (1844–1888), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #38520, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/lowell-james-russell-poems/impartiality.html, id L13628.
Form and metre
Impartiality is 18 lines in 3 stanzas of 6 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.1 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 33% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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 A-A-BB fairA · thee · thereA · memory · justB · mustB
- 2 -A-ABB good · itA · food · fitA · soB · o'erflowB
- 3 ABABCC fairA · aughtB · thereA · fraughtB · springsC · thingsC
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| I cannot say a scene is fair | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Because it is beloved of thee, | 9 | ····˘/˘·· |
| But I shall love to linger there, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| For sake of thy dear memory; | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| I would not be so coldly just | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| As to love only what I must. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| I cannot say a thought is good | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Because thou foundest joy in it; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Each soul must choose its proper food | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Which Nature hath decreed most fit; | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| But I shall ever deem it so | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Because it made thy heart o'erflow. | 8 | ········ |
| I love thee for that thou art fair; | 8 | ········ |
| And that thy spirit joys in aught | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Createth a new beauty there, | 8 | ˘/˘··/˘· |
| With thine own dearest image fraught; | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| And love, for others' sake that springs, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Gives half their charm to lovely things. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
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.