Act III: Scene VIII
SALOMITH.What fears my sisters, O what mortal broils!All powerful God, are these the sacrifices,The first-fruits and the perfumes weThis day should offer at Thy altars?
One of the daughters of the Choir.What spectacle unto our timid eyes!Who could have feared we ever should beholdThe murderous sword, the homicidal lanceFlashing within the house of peace?
Another.Whence comes it that Jerusalem,Full of indifference to her God,Is silent in her present danger?Whence comes it, sisters, that for our protectionBrave Abner, at the least, speaks not aloud?
SALOMITH.Ah! in a court, in which prevailsNo other law than force and violence;In which its honours and employments areThe price of blind and base obedience,Who will desire, my sister, to lift upHis voice for sorrowing innocence?
Another.For whom's that sacred diadem preparedIn this confusion--peril violent?
SALOMITH.The Lord has deigned to speak;But who can make us understandWhat to his prophet He has now revealed?Arms He Himself in our defence?Or does He arm to overwhelm us?
All the choir sing,O promise! threatening! mysterious gloom!What evil and what good by turns foretold!How can we reconcileSo much of wrath and love?
One voice alone.Sion will be no more; a cruel flameWill burn up all her excellence.
Another voice.O God, shield Sion; Thy eternal wordShe holds for her foundations.
The firstHow all her splendour fades before my eyes.
The second.I see on every side her glory radiant
The first.Sion is sunk to a profound abyss.
The second.Sion, whose brow is in the heavens.
The firstWhat sorrowful abasement!
The second.What immortal glory!
The firstWhat wailings!
The second.What songs of victory!
A third.Let us cease from troubling; our God one dayWill reconcile this mystery sublime!
All three.Let us revere His anger; trust His love.
Another.God! of a heart that loveth TheeWho can disturb the peace?Itself forgetting ever,It seeks, in all, Thy will supreme.On earth--in heaven even can there bloomAnother blessing than the tranquil peaceOf a heart that loveth Thee?
Words in this poem
- homicidal a.
- Pertaining to homicide; tending to homicide; murderous.
- aloud adv.
- With a loud voice, or great noise; loudly; audibly. [Pref. a- + loud.]
- defence n.
- The act of defending, or the state of being defended; protection, as from violence or danger. [F. défense, OF. defense, fem., defens, masc., fr. L. defensa (cf. Fence.]
- splendour n.
- Great brightness; brilliant luster; brilliancy; as, the splendor ot the sun. B. Jonson. [L. fr. splendere to shine: cf. F. splendeur.]
- abasement n.
- The act of abasing, humbling, or bringing low; the state of being abased or humbled; humiliation. [Cf. F. abaissement.]
- revere v. t.
- To regard with reverence, or profound respect and affection, mingled with awe or fear; to venerate; to reverence; to honor in estimation. [L. revereri; pref. re- re- + vereri to fear, perh. akin to E. wary: cf. F. révérer.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Act III: Scene VIII is in the public domain. This text is taken from Athaliah: A Tragedy, Project Gutenberg ebook #21967, the J. Donkersley 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: Jean Racine, Act III: Scene VIII, in Athaliah: A Tragedy (1873), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21967, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/racine-athaliah/act-iii-scene-viii.html, id L26970.
Form and metre
Act III: Scene VIII is 72 lines in 20 stanzas. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic pentameter.
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.
- 20 -AB---BA another · theeA · peaceB · ever · supreme · bloom · peaceB · theeA
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 |
|---|---|---|
| SALOMITH. | 3 | ··· |
| What fears my sisters, O what mortal broils! | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| All powerful God, are these the sacrifices, | 11 | ·/˘····/˘·˘ |
| The first-fruits and the perfumes we | 8 | ·····˘/· |
| This day should offer at Thy altars? | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| One of the daughters of the Choir. | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| What spectacle unto our timid eyes! | 10 | ·/˘˘··//˘· |
| Who could have feared we ever should behold | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| The murderous sword, the homicidal lance | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| Flashing within the house of peace? | 8 | /˘······ |
| Another. | 3 | ˘/˘ |
| Whence comes it that Jerusalem, | 8 | ····˘/˘˘ |
| Full of indifference to her God, | 9 | ··˘/˘˘··· |
| Is silent in her present danger? | 9 | ·/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Whence comes it, sisters, that for our protection | 11 | ···/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Brave Abner, at the least, speaks not aloud? | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| SALOMITH. | 3 | ··· |
| Ah! in a court, in which prevails | 8 | ······˘/ |
| No other law than force and violence; | 10 | ·/˘····/˘˘ |
| In which its honours and employments are | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| The price of blind and base obedience, | 10 | ······˘/˘˘ |
| Who will desire, my sister, to lift up | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| His voice for sorrowing innocence? | 9 | ···/˘˘/˘˘ |
| Another. | 3 | ˘/˘ |
| For whom's that sacred diadem prepared | 10 | ···/˘/˘·˘/ |
| In this confusion--peril violent? | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘/˘˘ |
| SALOMITH. | 3 | ··· |
| The Lord has deigned to speak; | 6 | ······ |
| But who can make us understand | 8 | ······˘/ |
| What to his prophet He has now revealed? | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Arms He Himself in our defence? | 9 | ··˘/·/˘˘/ |
| Or does He arm to overwhelm us? | 9 | ······˘/· |
| All the choir sing, | 5 | ··/˘· |
| O promise! threatening! mysterious gloom! | 10 | ·/˘/˘˘/˘˘· |
| What evil and what good by turns foretold! | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| How can we reconcile | 6 | ···/˘· |
| So much of wrath and love? | 6 | ······ |
| One voice alone. | 4 | ··˘/ |
| Sion will be no more; a cruel flame | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Will burn up all her excellence. | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| Another voice. | 4 | ˘/˘· |
| O God, shield Sion; Thy eternal word | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| She holds for her foundations. | 7 | ····˘/˘ |
| The first | 2 | ·· |
| How all her splendour fades before my eyes. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| The second. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| I see on every side her glory radiant | 11 | ···/˘··/˘/˘ |
| The first. | 2 | ·· |
| Sion is sunk to a profound abyss. | 10 | ······˘/˘/ |
| The second. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| Sion, whose brow is in the heavens. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| The first | 2 | ·· |
| What sorrowful abasement! | 7 | ·/˘˘˘/˘ |
| The second. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| What immortal glory! | 6 | ·˘/˘/˘ |
| The first | 2 | ·· |
| What wailings! | 3 | ·/˘ |
| The second. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| What songs of victory! | 6 | ···/˘˘ |
| A third. | 2 | ·· |
| Let us cease from troubling; our God one day | 10 | ····/˘/··· |
| Will reconcile this mystery sublime! | 10 | ·/˘··/˘˘˘/ |
| All three. | 2 | ·· |
| Let us revere His anger; trust His love. | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| Another. | 3 | ˘/˘ |
| God! of a heart that loveth Thee | 8 | ········ |
| Who can disturb the peace? | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| Itself forgetting ever, | 7 | ˘/˘/˘/˘ |
| It seeks, in all, Thy will supreme. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| On earth--in heaven even can there bloom | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Another blessing than the tranquil peace | 10 | ˘/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Of a heart that loveth Thee? | 7 | ······· |
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.