Scene VI
ORPHEUS. What sorrow-laden song shall e'er be foundTo match the burden of my matchless woe?How shall I make the fount of tears abound,To weep apace with grief's unmeasured flow?Salt tears I'll waste upon the barren ground,So long as life delays me here below;And since my fate hath wrought me wrong so sore,I swear I'll never love a woman more!Henceforth I'll pluck the buds of opening spring,The bloom of youth when life is loveliest,Ere years have spoiled the beauty which they bring:This love, I swear, is sweetest, softest, best!Of female charms let no one speak or sing;Since she is slain who ruled within my breast.He who would seek my converse, let him seeThat ne'er he talk of woman's love to me!How pitiful is he who changes mindFor woman! for her love laments or grieves!Who suffers her in chains his will to bind,Or trusts her words lighter than withered leaves,Her loving looks more treacherous than the wind!A thousand times she veers; to nothing cleaves:Follows who flies; from him who follows, flees;And comes and goes like waves on stormy seas!High Jove confirms the truth of what I said,Who, caught and bound in love's delightful snare,Enjoys in heaven his own bright Ganymed:Phoebus on earth had Hyacinth the fair:Hercules, conqueror of the world, was ledCaptive to Hylas by this love so rare.—Advice for husbands! Seek divorce, and flyFar, far away from female company!
A MAENAD. Ho! Sisters! Up! Alive!See him who doth our sex deride!Hunt him to death, the slave!Thou snatch the thyrsus! Thou this oak-tree rive!Cast down this doeskin and that hide!We'll wreak our fury on the knave!Yea, he shall feel our wrath, the knave!He shall yield up his hideRiven as woodmen fir-trees rive!No power his life can save;Since women he hath dared deride!Ho! To him, sisters! Ho! Alive!
A MAENAD. Ho! Bacchus! Ho! I yield thee thanks for this!Through all the woodland we the wretch have borne:So that each root is slaked with blood of his:Yea, limb from limb his body have we tornThrough the wild forest with a fearful bliss:His gore hath bathed the earth by ash and thorn!—Go then! thy blame on lawful wedlock fling!Ho! Bacchus! take the victim that we bring!
CHORUS OF MAENADS. Bacchus! we all must follow thee!Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé!
With ivy coronals, bunch and berry,Crown we our heads to worship thee!Thou hast bidden us to make merryDay and night with jollity!Drink then! Bacchus is here! Drink free,And hand ye the drinking-cup to me!Bacchus! we all must follow thee!Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé!
See, I have emptied my horn already:Stretch hither your beaker to me, I pray:Are the hills and the lawns where we roam unsteady?Or is it my brain that reels away?Let every one run to and fro through the hay,As ye see me run! Ho! after me!Bacchus! we all must follow thee!Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé!
Methinks I am dropping in swoon or slumber:Am I drunken or sober, yes or no?What are these weights my feet encumber?You too are tipsy, well I know!Let every one do as ye see me do,Let every one drink and quaff like me!Bacchus! we all must follow thee!Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé!
Cry Bacchus! Cry Bacchus! Be blithe and merry,Tossing wine down your throats away!Let sleep then come and our gladness bury:Drink you, and you, and you, while ye may!Dancing is over for me to-day.Let every one cry aloud Evohé!Bacchus! we all must follow thee!Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé!
Words in this poem 16
- orpheus n.
- The famous mythic Thracian poet, son of the Muse Calliope, and husband of Eurydice. He is reputed to have had power to entrance beasts and inanimate objects by the music of his lyre.
- 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,]
- apace adv.
- With a quick pace; quick; fast; speedily. [Pref. a- + pace. OE. a pas at a walk, in which a is the article. See Pace.]
- henceforth adv.
- From this time forward; henceforward.
- jove n.
- The chief divinity of the ancient Romans; Jupiter. [L. Jupiter, gen. Jovis, OL. Jovis, nom. & gen. for Djovis; akin to E. Tuesday. See Tuesday, and cf. Jupiter.]
- phoebus n.
- Apollo; the sun god.
- deride v. t.
- To laugh at with contempt; to laugh to scorn; to turn to ridicule or make sport of; to mock; to scoff at. [L. deridere, derisum; de- + rid to laugh. See Ridicule.]
- doeskin n.
- The skin of the doe.
- wreak v. i.
- To reck; to care.
- knave n.
- A boy; especially, a boy servant. Wyclif. [OE., boy, servant, knave, AS. cnafa boy, youth; cf. AS. cnapa boy, youth, D. kna, G. knabe boy, knappe esquire, Icel. knapi, Sw. knape esquire, knäfvel knave.]
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
- beaker n.
- A large drinking cup, with a wide mouth, supported on a foot or standard. [OE. biker; akin to Icel. bikarr, Sw. bägare, Dan. baeger, G. becher, It. bicchiere; -- all fr. LL. bicarium, prob. fr. Gr. wine jar, or perh. L. bacar wine vess]
- methinks v.
- It seems to me; I think. See Me. [AS. þyncan to seem, me þynceedh, me þuhte, OE. me thinketh, me thoughte; akin to G. dünken to seem, denken to think, and E. think. See Me, and Think.]
- quaff v. t.
- To drink with relish; to drink copiously of; to swallow in large draughts. [For quach, fr. Gael. & Ir. cuach a drinking cup; cf. L. caucus a drinking vessel. Cf. Quaigh.]
- blithe a.
- Gay; merry; sprightly; joyous; glad; cheerful; as, a blithe spirit. [AS. bli blithe, kind; akin to Goth. blei kind, Icel. bli mild, gentle, Dan. & Sw. blid gentle, D. blijd blithe, OHG. blidi kind, blithe.]
- aloud adv.
- With a loud voice, or great noise; loudly; audibly. [Pref. a- + loud.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Scene VI is in the public domain. This text is taken from The 'Orfeo' of Poliziano, tr. John Addington Symonds (first printed in Sketches and Studies in Italy, 1879; this text is Horatio F. Brown's 1898 combined reprint), Project Gutenberg ebook #18893, the John Addington Symonds 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: Angelo Poliziano, Scene VI, in Orfeo (1879), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #18893, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/poliziano-orfeo/scene-vi.html, id L26557.
Form and metre
Scene VI is 86 lines in 8 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 85%).
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 ABABABCCDEDEDEFFGHGHGHIIJK-KJK-- foundA · woeB · aboundA · flowB · groundA · belowB · soreC · moreC · springD · loveliestE · bringD · bestE · singD · breastE · seeF · meF · mindG · grievesH · bindG · leavesH · windG · cleavesH · fleesI · seasI · saidJ · snareK · ganymed · fairK · ledJ · rareK · fly · company
- 2 ABCABCCBACBA aliveA · derideB · slaveC · riveA · hideB · knaveC · knaveC · hideB · riveA · saveC · derideB · aliveA
- 3 AB-BABCC thisA · borneB · his · tornB · blissA · thornB · flingC · bringC
- 5 ABA-BBB- berryA · theeB · merryA · jollity · freeB · meB · theeB · ohé
- 6 ABABBCC- alreadyA · prayB · unsteadyA · awayB · hayB · meC · theeC · ohé
- 7 ABAB-CCB slumberA · noB · encumberA · knowB · do · meC · theeC · ohéB
- 8 ABABB--- merryA · awayB · buryA · mayB · dayB · evohé · thee · ohé
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 |
|---|---|---|
| ORPHEUS. What sorrow-laden song shall e'er be found | 12 | /˘·/˘/˘····· |
| To match the burden of my matchless woe? | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| How shall I make the fount of tears abound, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| To weep apace with grief's unmeasured flow? | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Salt tears I'll waste upon the barren ground, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| So long as life delays me here below; | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| And since my fate hath wrought me wrong so sore, | 10 | ·········· |
| I swear I'll never love a woman more! | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Henceforth I'll pluck the buds of opening spring, | 10 | //·····/˘· |
| The bloom of youth when life is loveliest, | 10 | ·········· |
| Ere years have spoiled the beauty which they bring: | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| This love, I swear, is sweetest, softest, best! | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| Of female charms let no one speak or sing; | 10 | ·/········ |
| Since she is slain who ruled within my breast. | 10 | ·········· |
| He who would seek my converse, let him see | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| That ne'er he talk of woman's love to me! | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| How pitiful is he who changes mind | 10 | ·/˘˘···/˘· |
| For woman! for her love laments or grieves! | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| Who suffers her in chains his will to bind, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Or trusts her words lighter than withered leaves, | 10 | ····/˘·/˘· |
| Her loving looks more treacherous than the wind! | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| A thousand times she veers; to nothing cleaves: | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Follows who flies; from him who follows, flees; | 10 | /˘·····/˘· |
| And comes and goes like waves on stormy seas! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| High Jove confirms the truth of what I said, | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Who, caught and bound in love's delightful snare, | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Enjoys in heaven his own bright Ganymed: | 10 | ˘/·/˘····· |
| Phoebus on earth had Hyacinth the fair: | 10 | /˘···/˘··· |
| Hercules, conqueror of the world, was led | 10 | /˘·/˘····· |
| Captive to Hylas by this love so rare.— | 10 | /˘········ |
| Advice for husbands! Seek divorce, and fly | 10 | ˘/·/˘·˘/·· |
| Far, far away from female company! | 10 | ··˘/·/·/˘˘ |
| A MAENAD. Ho! Sisters! Up! Alive! | 9 | ····/˘·˘/ |
| See him who doth our sex deride! | 9 | ····/˘·˘/ |
| Hunt him to death, the slave! | 6 | ······ |
| Thou snatch the thyrsus! Thou this oak-tree rive! | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Cast down this doeskin and that hide! | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| We'll wreak our fury on the knave! | 9 | ··/˘/˘··· |
| Yea, he shall feel our wrath, the knave! | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| He shall yield up his hide | 6 | ······ |
| Riven as woodmen fir-trees rive! | 8 | /˘······ |
| No power his life can save; | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| Since women he hath dared deride! | 9 | ·/˘···˘˘/ |
| Ho! To him, sisters! Ho! Alive! | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| A MAENAD. Ho! Bacchus! Ho! I yield thee thanks for this! | 13 | ····/˘······· |
| Through all the woodland we the wretch have borne: | 10 | ···/······ |
| So that each root is slaked with blood of his: | 10 | ·········· |
| Yea, limb from limb his body have we torn | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Through the wild forest with a fearful bliss: | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| His gore hath bathed the earth by ash and thorn!— | 10 | ·········· |
| Go then! thy blame on lawful wedlock fling! | 10 | ·····/˘/·· |
| Ho! Bacchus! take the victim that we bring! | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| CHORUS OF MAENADS. Bacchus! we all must follow thee! | 13 | /˘···/˘···/˘· |
| Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé! | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| With ivy coronals, bunch and berry, | 10 | ·/˘·····/˘ |
| Crown we our heads to worship thee! | 9 | ··/˘··/˘· |
| Thou hast bidden us to make merry | 9 | ··/˘···/˘ |
| Day and night with jollity! | 7 | ····/˘˘ |
| Drink then! Bacchus is here! Drink free, | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| And hand ye the drinking-cup to me! | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Bacchus! we all must follow thee! | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé! | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| See, I have emptied my horn already: | 10 | ···/˘··˘/˘ |
| Stretch hither your beaker to me, I pray: | 10 | ·/˘·/˘···· |
| Are the hills and the lawns where we roam unsteady? | 12 | ·········˘/˘ |
| Or is it my brain that reels away? | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| Let every one run to and fro through the hay, | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| As ye see me run! Ho! after me! | 9 | ········· |
| Bacchus! we all must follow thee! | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé! | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| Methinks I am dropping in swoon or slumber: | 11 | ˘/··/˘···/˘ |
| Am I drunken or sober, yes or no? | 10 | ··/˘·/˘··· |
| What are these weights my feet encumber? | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| You too are tipsy, well I know! | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Let every one do as ye see me do, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Let every one drink and quaff like me! | 10 | ·/˘˘······ |
| Bacchus! we all must follow thee! | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé! | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| Cry Bacchus! Cry Bacchus! Be blithe and merry, | 11 | ·/˘·/˘···/˘ |
| Tossing wine down your throats away! | 8 | /˘····˘/ |
| Let sleep then come and our gladness bury: | 11 | ·····/˘/˘/˘ |
| Drink you, and you, and you, while ye may! | 9 | ········· |
| Dancing is over for me to-day. | 9 | /˘······· |
| Let every one cry aloud Evohé! | 10 | ·/˘˘··˘/·· |
| Bacchus! we all must follow thee! | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| Bacchus! Bacchus! Ohé! Ohé! | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
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