He Prays God to Guide His Frail Bark to a Safe Port
Who is resolved to venture his vain lifeOn the deceitful wave and 'mid the rocks,Alone, unfearing death, in little bark,Can never be far distant from his end:Therefore betimes he should return to portWhile to the helm yet answers his true sail.
The gentle breezes to which helm and sailI trusted, entering on this amorous life,And hoping soon to make some better port,Have led me since amid a thousand rocks,And the sure causes of my mournful endAre not alone without, but in my bark.
Long cabin'd and confined in this blind bark,I wander'd, looking never at the sail,Which, prematurely, bore me to my end;Till He was pleased who brought me into lifeSo far to call me back from those sharp rocks,That, distantly, at last was seen my port.
As lights at midnight seen in any port,Sometimes from the main sea by passing bark,Save when their ray is lost 'mid storms or rocks;So I too from above the swollen sailSaw the sure colours of that other life,And could not help but sigh to reach my end.
Not that I yet am certain of that end,For wishing with the dawn to be in port,Is a long voyage for so short a life:And then I fear to find me in frail bark,Beyond my wishes full its every sailWith the strong wind which drove me on those rocks.
Escape I living from these doubtful rocks,Or if my exile have but a fair end,How happy shall I be to furl my sail,And my last anchor cast in some sure port;But, ah! I burn, and, as some blazing bark,So hard to me to leave my wonted life.
Lord of my end and master of my life,Before I lose my bark amid the rocks,Direct to a good port its harass'd sail!
Words in this poem
- betimes adv.
- In good season or time; before it is late; seasonably; early. [Pref. be- (for by) + time; that is, by the proper time. The -s is an adverbial ending.]
- 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]
- distantly adv.
- At a distance; remotely; with reserve.
- drove n.
- A collection of cattle driven, or cattle collected for driving; a number of animals, as oxen, sheep, or swine, driven in a body. [AS. draf, fr. drifan to drive. See Drive.]
- 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,]
- furl v. t.
- To draw up or gather into close compass; to wrap or roll, as a sail, close to the yard, stay, or mast, or, as a flag, close to or around its staff, securing it there by a gasket or line. Totten. [Contr. fr. furdle, fr. fardel bundle: cf. F. ferler to furl, OF. fardeler to pack. See Furdle, Fardel, and cf. Farl.]
- wonted a.
- Accustomed; customary; usual.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
He Prays God to Guide His Frail Bark to a Safe Port is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Sonnets, Triumphs and Other Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #17650, the various hands translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Petrarch, He Prays God to Guide His Frail Bark to a Safe Port, in The Sonnets, Triumphs and Other Poems (1859), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #17650, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/petrarch-sonnets/he-prays-god-to-guide-his-frail-bark-to-a-safe-port.html, id L14577.
Form and metre
He Prays God to Guide His Frail Bark to a Safe Port is 39 lines in 7 verse paragraphs. 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 87%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 18% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Who is resolved to venture his vain life | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| On the deceitful wave and 'mid the rocks, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Alone, unfearing death, in little bark, | 10 | ˘/·····/˘· |
| Can never be far distant from his end: | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Therefore betimes he should return to port | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| While to the helm yet answers his true sail. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The gentle breezes to which helm and sail | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| I trusted, entering on this amorous life, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| And hoping soon to make some better port, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Have led me since amid a thousand rocks, | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| And the sure causes of my mournful end | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Are not alone without, but in my bark. | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Long cabin'd and confined in this blind bark, | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| I wander'd, looking never at the sail, | 10 | ·/˘/˘/˘··· |
| Which, prematurely, bore me to my end; | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Till He was pleased who brought me into life | 10 | ·········· |
| So far to call me back from those sharp rocks, | 10 | ·········· |
| That, distantly, at last was seen my port. | 10 | ·/˘˘······ |
| As lights at midnight seen in any port, | 10 | ···/···/˘· |
| Sometimes from the main sea by passing bark, | 10 | ˘/·····/˘· |
| Save when their ray is lost 'mid storms or rocks; | 10 | ·········· |
| So I too from above the swollen sail | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Saw the sure colours of that other life, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And could not help but sigh to reach my end. | 10 | ·········· |
| Not that I yet am certain of that end, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| For wishing with the dawn to be in port, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Is a long voyage for so short a life: | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| And then I fear to find me in frail bark, | 10 | ·········· |
| Beyond my wishes full its every sail | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| With the strong wind which drove me on those rocks. | 10 | ·········· |
| Escape I living from these doubtful rocks, | 10 | ˘/·/˘··/˘· |
| Or if my exile have but a fair end, | 10 | ···/······ |
| How happy shall I be to furl my sail, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| And my last anchor cast in some sure port; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| But, ah! I burn, and, as some blazing bark, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| So hard to me to leave my wonted life. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Lord of my end and master of my life, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Before I lose my bark amid the rocks, | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| Direct to a good port its harass'd sail! | 10 | ˘/·····˘/· |
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