Satire IV
What! you, my Alcibiades, aspireTo sway the state!--(Suppose that bearded sire,Whom hemlock from a guilty world removed,Thus to address the stripling that he loved.)On what apt talents for a charge so high,Ward of great Pericles, do you rely?Forecast on others by gray hairs conferred,Haply, with you, anticipates the beard!And prompts you, prescient of the public weal,Now to disclose your thoughts, and now conceal!Hence, when the rabble form some daring plan,And factious murmurs spread from man to man,Mute and attentive you can bid them stand,By the majestic wafture of your hand!Lo! all is hushed: what now, what will he speak,What floods of sense from his charged bosom break!"Romans! I think--I fear--I think, I say,This is not well:--perhaps, the better way."--O power of eloquence! But you, forsooth,In the nice, trembling scale can poise the truth,With even hand; can with intentive view,Amid deflecting curves, the right pursue;Or, where the rule deceives the vulgar eyeWith its warped foot, the unerring line apply:And, while your sentence strikes with doom precise,Stamp the black Theta on the front of vice!Rash youth! relying on a specious skin,While all is dark deformity within,Check the fond thought; nor, like the peacock proud,Spread your gay plumage to the applauding crowd,Before your hour arrive:--Ah, rather drainWhole isles of hellebore, to cool your brain!For, what is YOUR chief good? "To heap my boardWith every dainty earth and sea afford;To bathe, and bask me in the sunny ray,And doze the careless hours of life away."Hold, hold! you tattered beldame, hobbling by,If haply asked, would make the same reply."But I am nobly born." Agreed. "And fair."'Tis granted too: yet goody Baucis there,Who, to the looser slaves, her pot-herbs cries,Is just as philosophic, just as wise.--How few, alas! their proper faults explore!While, on his loaded back, who walks before,Each eye is fixed.--You touch a stranger's arm,And ask him if he knows Vectidius' farm?"Whose," he replies? That rich old chuff's, whose groundWould tire a hawk to wheel it fairly round."O ho! that wretch, on whose devoted headIll stars and angry gods their rage have shed!Who on high festivals, when all is glee,And the loose yoke hangs on the cross-way tree,As, from the jar, he scrapes the incrusted clay,Groans o'er the revels of so dear a day;Champs on a coated onion dipt in brine;And while his hungry hinds exulting dineOn barley broth, sucks up, with thrifty care,The mothery dregs of his palled vinegar!"But, if "YOU bask you in the sunny ray,And doze the careless hours of youth away,"There are, who at such gross delights will spurn,And spit their venom on your life in turn;Expose, with eager hate, your low desires,Your secret passions, and unhallowed fires.--"Why, while the beard is nursed with every art,Those anxious pains to bare the shameful part?In vain:--should five athletic knaves essayTo pluck, with ceaseless care, the weeds away,Still the rank fern, congenial to the soil,Would spread luxuriant, and defeat their toil!"Misled by rage, our bodies we expose,And while we give, forget to ward, the blows;This, this is life! and thus our faults are shown,By mutual spleen: we know--and we are known!But your defects elude inquiring eyes!--Beneath the groin the ulcerous evil lies,Impervious to the view; and o'er the woundThe broad effulgence of the zone is bound!But can you, thus, the inward pang restrain,Thus cheat the sense of languor and of pain?"But if the people call me wise and just,Sure I may take the general voice on trust!"--No:--If you tremble at the sight of gold;Indulge lust's wildest sallies uncontrolled;Or, bent on outrage, at the midnight hour,Girt with a ruffian band, the Forum scour;Then, wretch! in vain the voice of praise you hear,And drink the vulgar shout with greedy ear.Hence, with your spurious claims! Rejudge your causeAnd fling the rabble back their vile applause;To your own breast, in quest of worth, repair,And blush to find how poor a stock is there!
Words in this poem 33
- aspire v. t.
- To aspire to; to long for; to try to reach; to mount to.
- sire n.
- A lord, master, or other person in authority. See Sir. [F. sire, originally, an older person. See Sir.]
- stripling n.
- A youth in the state of adolescence, or just passing from boyhood to manhood; a lad. [Dim. of strip; as if a small strip from the main stock or steam.]
- forecast v. t.
- To plan beforehand; to scheme; to project.
- haply adv.
- By hap, chance, luck, or accident; perhaps; it may be.
- prescient a.
- Having knowledge of coming events; foreseeing; conscious beforehand. [L. praesciens, -entis, p. pr. of praescire to foreknow; prae before + scire to know: cf. F. prescient. See Science.]
- wafture n.
- The act of waving; a wavelike motion; a waft. R. Browning.
- forsooth v. t.
- To address respectfully with the term forsooth.
- intentive a.
- Attentive; intent. [OE. ententif, OF. ententif, fr. L. intentivus intensive. See Intent, n., and cf. Intensive.]
- amid prep.
- In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among. [OE. amidde, amiddes, on midden, AS. on middan, in the middle, fr. midde the middle. The s is an adverbial ending, originally marking the genitive; the t is a la]
- unerring a.
- Committing no mistake; incapable or error or failure certain; sure; unfailing; as, the unerring wisdom of God.
- dainty n.
- Value; estimation; the gratification or pleasure taken in anything. [OE. deinie, dainte, deintie, deyntee, OF. deintié delicacy, orig., dignity, honor, fr. L. dignitas, fr. dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Dignity.]
- bask v. i.
- To lie in warmth; to be exposed to genial heat. [OScand. ba to bathe one's self, or perh. bakask to bake one's self, sk being reflexive. See Bath, n., Bake, v. t.]
- sunny a.
- Of or pertaining to the sun; proceeding from, or resembling the sun; hence, shining; bright; brilliant; radiant.
- beldame n.
- Grandmother; -- corresponding to belsire. [Pref. bel-, denoting relationship + dame mother: cf. F. belledame fair lady, It. belladonna. See Belle, and Dame.]
- nobly adv.
- Of noble extraction; as, nobly born or descended.
- goody n.
- A bonbon, cake, or the like; -- usually in the pl.
- philosophic a.
- Of or pertaining to philosophy; versed in, or imbued with, the principles of philosophy; hence, characterizing a philosopher; rational; wise; temperate; calm; cool. [L. philosophicus: cf. F. philosophique.]
- explore v. t.
- To seek for or after; to strive to attain by search; to look wisely and carefully for. [L. explorare to explore; ex out+plorare to cry out aloud,prob. orig., to cause to flow; perh. akin to E. flow: cf. F. explorer.]
- fairly adv.
- In a fairmanner; clearly; openly; plainly; fully; distinctly; frankly.
- angry a.
- Troublesome; vexatious; rigorous. [See Anger.]
- glee n.
- Music; minstrelsy; entertainment.
- exulting a.
- Rejoicing triumphantly or exceedingly; exultant.
- dine v. i.
- To eat the principal regular meal of the day; to take dinner. [F. dîner, OF. disner, LL. disnare, contr. fr. an assumed disjunare; dis- + an assumed junare (OF. juner) to fast, for L. jejunare, fr. jejunus fasting. See Jeju]
- mothery a.
- Consisting of, containing, or resembling, mother (in vinegar).
- spurn v. t.
- To drive back or away, as with the foot; to kick. [OE. spurnen to kick against, to stumble over, AS. spurnan to kick, offend; akin to spura spur, OS. & OHG. spurnan to kick, Icel. spyrna, L. spernere to despise,]
- unhallowed a.
- Not consecrated; hence, profane; unholy; impious; wicked. [Pref. un- not + hallowed.]
- ceaseless a.
- Without pause or end; incessant.
- defeat v. t.
- To undo; to disfigure; to destroy. [From F. défait, OF. desfait, p. p. ofe défaire, OF. desfaire, to undo; L. dis- + facere to do. See Feat, Fact, and cf. Disfashion.]
- effulgence n.
- The state of being effulgent; extreme brilliancy; a flood of light; great luster or brightness; splendor.
- girt v. t.
- To gird; to encircle; to invest by means of a girdle; to measure the girth of; as, to girt a tree. [From Girt, n., cf. Girth, v.]
- forum n.
- A market place or public place in Rome, where causes were judicially tried, and orations delivered to the people. [L.; akin to foris, foras, out of doors. See Foreign.]
- rejudge v. t.
- To judge again; to re Rejudge his acts, and dignify disgrace.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Satire IV is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Satires of Juvenal, Persius, Sulpicia, and Lucilius Literally translated into English prose, with notes, chronological tables, arguments, &c., Project Gutenberg ebook #50657; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Persius, Satire IV, in The Satires of Persius (1821), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #50657, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/persius-satires/satire-iv.html, id L23627.
Form and metre
Satire IV is 92 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 87% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%).
See other poems in heroic couplets, 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--BBCCDD--EEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQRRSSTTUUVVWWXX--YYZZaabbccddeeffgghhiijjkkllmm--mm aspire · sire · removed · loved · highA · relyA · conferred · beard · wealB · concealB · planC · manC · standD · handD · speak · break · sayE · wayE · forsoothF · truthF · viewG · pursueG · eyeH · applyH · preciseI · viceI · skinJ · withinJ · proudK · crowdK · drainL · brainL · boardM · affordM · rayN · awayN · byO · replyO · fairP · thereP · criesQ · wiseQ · exploreR · beforeR · armS · farmS · groundT · roundT · headU · shedU · gleeV · treeV · clayW · dayW · brineX · dineX · care · vinegar · rayY · awayY · spurnZ · turnZ · desiresa · firesa · artb · partb · essayc · awayc · soild · toild · exposee · blowse · shownf · knownf · eyesg · liesg · woundh · boundh · restraini · paini · justj · trustj · goldk · uncontrolledk · hourl · scourl · hearm · earm · cause · applause · repairm · therem
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 |
|---|---|---|
| What! you, my Alcibiades, aspire | 8 | ······˘/ |
| To sway the state!--(Suppose that bearded sire, | 11 | ····˘/·/˘/˘ |
| Whom hemlock from a guilty world removed, | 10 | ·/···/˘·˘/ |
| Thus to address the stripling that he loved.) | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| On what apt talents for a charge so high, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Ward of great Pericles, do you rely? | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| Forecast on others by gray hairs conferred, | 10 | /··/˘···˘/ |
| Haply, with you, anticipates the beard! | 10 | /˘··˘/˘··· |
| And prompts you, prescient of the public weal, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Now to disclose your thoughts, and now conceal! | 10 | ··˘/····˘/ |
| Hence, when the rabble form some daring plan, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And factious murmurs spread from man to man, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| Mute and attentive you can bid them stand, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| By the majestic wafture of your hand! | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘··· |
| Lo! all is hushed: what now, what will he speak, | 10 | ·········· |
| What floods of sense from his charged bosom break! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| "Romans! I think--I fear--I think, I say, | 10 | /˘········ |
| This is not well:--perhaps, the better way."-- | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| O power of eloquence! But you, forsooth, | 10 | ·/·/˘˘··˘/ |
| In the nice, trembling scale can poise the truth, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| With even hand; can with intentive view, | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| Amid deflecting curves, the right pursue; | 10 | ˘/˘/˘···˘/ |
| Or, where the rule deceives the vulgar eye | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| With its warped foot, the unerring line apply: | 11 | ·····˘/˘·˘/ |
| And, while your sentence strikes with doom precise, | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Stamp the black Theta on the front of vice! | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Rash youth! relying on a specious skin, | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘· |
| While all is dark deformity within, | 10 | ····˘/˘˘·· |
| Check the fond thought; nor, like the peacock proud, | 10 | ·······/·· |
| Spread your gay plumage to the applauding crowd, | 11 | ···/˘··˘/˘· |
| Before your hour arrive:--Ah, rather drain | 10 | ···/˘/·/˘· |
| Whole isles of hellebore, to cool your brain! | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| For, what is YOUR chief good? "To heap my board | 10 | ·········· |
| With every dainty earth and sea afford; | 10 | ·/˘/˘···˘/ |
| To bathe, and bask me in the sunny ray, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And doze the careless hours of life away." | 10 | ···/˘/··˘/ |
| Hold, hold! you tattered beldame, hobbling by, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| If haply asked, would make the same reply. | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| "But I am nobly born." Agreed. "And fair." | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| 'Tis granted too: yet goody Baucis there, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Who, to the looser slaves, her pot-herbs cries, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Is just as philosophic, just as wise.-- | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| How few, alas! their proper faults explore! | 10 | ··˘/·/˘·˘/ |
| While, on his loaded back, who walks before, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Each eye is fixed.--You touch a stranger's arm, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And ask him if he knows Vectidius' farm? | 10 | ·········· |
| "Whose," he replies? That rich old chuff's, whose ground | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Would tire a hawk to wheel it fairly round. | 10 | ·/·····/˘· |
| "O ho! that wretch, on whose devoted head | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Ill stars and angry gods their rage have shed! | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Who on high festivals, when all is glee, | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| And the loose yoke hangs on the cross-way tree, | 10 | ·········· |
| As, from the jar, he scrapes the incrusted clay, | 11 | ·······˘/˘· |
| Groans o'er the revels of so dear a day; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Champs on a coated onion dipt in brine; | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| And while his hungry hinds exulting dine | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| On barley broth, sucks up, with thrifty care, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| The mothery dregs of his palled vinegar!" | 11 | ·/˘˘····/˘˘ |
| But, if "YOU bask you in the sunny ray, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And doze the careless hours of youth away," | 10 | ···/˘/··˘/ |
| There are, who at such gross delights will spurn, | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| And spit their venom on your life in turn; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Expose, with eager hate, your low desires, | 11 | ˘/·/˘···˘/˘ |
| Your secret passions, and unhallowed fires.-- | 11 | ·/˘/˘·˘/˘/˘ |
| "Why, while the beard is nursed with every art, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Those anxious pains to bare the shameful part? | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| In vain:--should five athletic knaves essay | 10 | ····˘/˘·˘/ |
| To pluck, with ceaseless care, the weeds away, | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Still the rank fern, congenial to the soil, | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Would spread luxuriant, and defeat their toil!" | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/·· |
| Misled by rage, our bodies we expose, | 10 | ˘/··//˘·˘/ |
| And while we give, forget to ward, the blows; | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| This, this is life! and thus our faults are shown, | 10 | ······/··· |
| By mutual spleen: we know--and we are known! | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| But your defects elude inquiring eyes!-- | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘/˘· |
| Beneath the groin the ulcerous evil lies, | 10 | ·····/˘˘/· |
| Impervious to the view; and o'er the wound | 10 | ˘/˘······· |
| The broad effulgence of the zone is bound! | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| But can you, thus, the inward pang restrain, | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| Thus cheat the sense of languor and of pain? | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| "But if the people call me wise and just, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Sure I may take the general voice on trust!"-- | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| No:--If you tremble at the sight of gold; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Indulge lust's wildest sallies uncontrolled; | 10 | ˘/·/˘/˘·˘/ |
| Or, bent on outrage, at the midnight hour, | 11 | ···/···/·/˘ |
| Girt with a ruffian band, the Forum scour; | 11 | ···/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Then, wretch! in vain the voice of praise you hear, | 10 | ·········· |
| And drink the vulgar shout with greedy ear. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Hence, with your spurious claims! Rejudge your cause | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| And fling the rabble back their vile applause; | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| To your own breast, in quest of worth, repair, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| And blush to find how poor a stock is there! | 10 | ·········· |
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.