By Michael Angelo in the Bargello, Called an Apollo or a David

George Santayana (1863–1952) · 1922

iambic pentameter · ABAB · 68 lines · from Poems

What beauteous form beneath a marble veilAwaited in this block the Master's hand?Could not the magic of his art availTo unseal that beauty's tomb and bid it stand?

Alas! the torpid and unwilling massMisknew the sweetness of the mind's control,And the quick shifting of the winds, alas!Denied a body to that flickering soul.

Fair homeless spirit, harbinger of bliss,It wooed dead matter that they both might live,But dreamful earth still slumbered through the kissAnd missed the blessing heaven stooped to give,

As when Endymion, locked in dullard sleep,Endured the gaze of Dian, till she turnedStung with immortal wrath and doomed to weepHer maiden passion ignorantly spurned.

How should the vision stay to guide the hand,How should the holy thought and ardour stay,When the false deeps of all the soul are sandAnd the loose rivets of the spirit clay?

What chisel shaking in the pulse of lustShall find the perfect line, immortal, pure?What fancy blown by every random gustShall mount the breathless heavens and endure?

Vain was the trance through which a thrill of joyPassed for the nonce, when a vague hand, unled,Half shaped the image of this lovely boyAnd caught the angel's garment as he fled.

Leave, leave, distracted hand, the baffling stone,And on that clay, thy fickle heart, begin.Mould first some steadfast virtue of thine ownOut of the sodden substance of thy sin.

They who wrought wonders by the Nile of old,Bequeathing their immortal part to us,Cast their own spirit first into the mouldAnd were themselves the rock they fashioned thus.

Ever their docile and unwearied eyeTraced the same ancient pageant to the grave,And awe made rich their spirit's husbandryWith the perpetual refluence of its wave,

Till 'twixt the desert and the constant NileSphinx, pyramid, and awful temple grew,And the vast gods, self-knowing, learned to smileBeneath the sky's unalterable blue.

Long, long ere first the rapt Arcadian swainHeard Pan's wild music pulsing through the grove,His people's shepherds held paternal reignBeneath the large benignity of Jove.

Long mused the Delphic sibyl in her caveEre mid his laurels she beheld the god,And Beauty rose a virgin from the waveIn lands the foot of Heracles had trod.

Athena reared her consecrated wall,Poseidon laid its rocky basement sure,When Theseus had the monstrous race in thrallAnd made the worship of his people pure.

Long had the stripling stood in silence, veiled,Hearing the heroes' legend o'er and o'er,Long in the keen palaestra striven, nor quailedTo tame the body to the task it bore,

Ere soul and body, shaped by patient art,Walked linked with the gods, like friend with friend,And reason, mirrored in the sage's heart,Beheld her purpose and confessed her end.

Mould, then, thyself and let the marble be.Look not to frailty for immortal themes,Nor mock the travail of mortalityWith barren husks and harvesting of dreams.

Words in this poem 25
beauteous a.
Full of beauty; beautiful; very handsome. [Mostly poetic] -- Beau"te*ous*ly, adv. --
unseal v. t.
To break or remove the seal of; to open, as what is sealed; as, to unseal a letter. [1st pref. un- + seal.]
homeless a.
Destitute of a home. [AS.hamleas.]
dreamful a.
Full of dreams.
ignorantly adv.
In a ignorant manner; without knowledge; inadvertently.
ardour n.
Heat, in a literal sense; as, the ardor of the sun's rays. [L. ardor, fr. ardere to burn: cf. OF. ardor, ardur, F. ardeur.]
lust v. i.
To list; to like. [AS. lystan. See Lust, n., and cf. List to choose.]
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,]
breathless a.
Spent with labor or violent action; out of breath.
nonce n.
The one or single occasion; the present call or purpose; -- chiefly used in the phrase for the nonce. [For the nonce, OE. for the nones, a corruption of for then ones, where n. in then is a relic of AS. m in , dat. of the article and demonstrative pronoun, E. the]
mould n.
Crumbling, soft, friable earth; esp., earth containing the remains or constituents of organic matter, and suited to the growth of plants; soil. [OE. molde, AS. molde; akin to D. mul, G. mull, mulm, OHG. molt, molta, Icel. mold, Dan. muld, Sw. mull, Goth. mulda, and E. meal flour. See Meal, and cf. Mole a]
docile a.
Teachable; easy to teach; docible. [L. docilis,fr. docere to teach; cf. Gr. discere to learn, Gr. docile. Cf. Doctor, Didactic, Disciple.]
unwearied a.
Not wearied; not fatigued or tired; hence, persistent; not tiring or wearying; indefatigable.
pageant n.
A theatrical exhibition; a spectacle. [OE. pagent, pagen, originally, a movable scaffold or stage, hence, what was exhibited on it, fr. LL. pagina, akin to pangere to fasten; cf. L. pagina page, leaf]
refluence n.
The quality of being refluent; a flowing back.
rapt n.
An ecstasy; a trance. Bp. Morton. [From F. rapt abduction, rape, L. raptus, fr. rapere to seize and carry off, to transport; or fr. E. rapt, a. See Rapt, a., and Rapid.]
arcadian a.
Of or pertaining to Arcadia; pastoral; ideally rural; as, Arcadian simplicity or scenery. [L. Arcadius, Arcadicus, fr. Arcadia: cf. F. Arcadien, Arcadique.]
benignity n.
The quality of being benign; goodness; kindness; graciousness. [OE. benignite, F. bénignité, OF. bénigneté, fr. L. benignitas. See Benign.]
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.]
delphic a.
Of or relating to Delphi, or to the famous oracle of that place. [L. Delphicus, fr. Gr. Delphi, a town of Phocis, in Greece, now Kastri.]
sibyl n.
A woman supposed to be endowed with a spirit of prophecy.
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.]
veiled a.
Covered by, or as by, a veil; hidden.
frailty n.
The condition quality of being frail, physically, mentally, or morally, frailness; infirmity; weakness of resolution; liableness to be deceived or seduced. [OE. frelete, freilte, OF. fraileté, fr. L. fragilitas. See Frail, a., and cf. Fragility.]
mortality n.
The condition or quality of being mortal; subjection to death or to the necessity of dying. [L. mortalitas: cf. F. mortalité.]

Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.

About this text

By Michael Angelo in the Bargello, Called an Apollo or a David is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #49721; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: George Santayana, By Michael Angelo in the Bargello, Called an Apollo or a David, in Poems (1922), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #49721, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/santayana-poems/by-michael-angelo-in-the-bargello-called-an-apollo-or-a-davi.html, id L21746.

Form and metre

By Michael Angelo in the Bargello, Called an Apollo or a David is 68 lines in 17 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 13 of its 17 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%).

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. 1 ABAB veilA · handB · availA · standB
  2. 2 ABAB massA · controlB · alasA · soulB
  3. 3 ABAB blissA · liveB · kissA · giveB
  4. 4 ABAB sleepA · turnedB · weepA · spurnedB
  5. 5 ABAB handA · stayB · sandA · clayB
  6. 6 ABAB lustA · pureB · gustA · endureB
  7. 7 A-A- joyA · unled · boyA · fled
  8. 8 ABAB stoneA · beginB · ownA · sinB
  9. 9 ABAB oldA · usB · mouldA · thusB
  10. 10 -A-A eye · graveA · husbandry · waveA
  11. 11 ABAB nileA · grewB · smileA · blueB
  12. 12 ABAB swainA · groveB · reignA · joveB
  13. 13 ABAB caveA · godB · waveA · trodB
  14. 14 ABAB wallA · sureB · thrallA · pureB
  15. 15 A-A- veiledA · o'er · quailedA · bore
  16. 16 ABAB artA · friendB · heartA · endB
  17. 17 -A-A be · themesA · mortality · dreamsA
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.

LineSyl.Stress
What beauteous form beneath a marble veil11·/˘˘····/˘·
Awaited in this block the Master's hand?10˘/˘····/˘·
Could not the magic of his art avail10···/˘···˘/
To unseal that beauty's tomb and bid it stand?11·˘/·/˘·····
Alas! the torpid and unwilling mass10˘/·/˘·˘/˘·
Misknew the sweetness of the mind's control,10···/˘···˘/
And the quick shifting of the winds, alas!10···/˘···˘/
Denied a body to that flickering soul.10˘/·/˘··/˘·
Fair homeless spirit, harbinger of bliss,10·/˘/˘/˘˘··
It wooed dead matter that they both might live,10···/˘·····
But dreamful earth still slumbered through the kiss10·/˘··/˘···
And missed the blessing heaven stooped to give,10···/˘/˘···
As when Endymion, locked in dullard sleep,10·······/˘·
Endured the gaze of Dian, till she turned10˘/···/˘···
Stung with immortal wrath and doomed to weep10··˘/˘·····
Her maiden passion ignorantly spurned.10·/˘/˘/˘˘˘·
How should the vision stay to guide the hand,10···/˘·····
How should the holy thought and ardour stay,10···/˘··/˘·
When the false deeps of all the soul are sand10··········
And the loose rivets of the spirit clay?10···/˘··/˘·
What chisel shaking in the pulse of lust10·/˘/˘·····
Shall find the perfect line, immortal, pure?10···/··˘/˘·
What fancy blown by every random gust10·/˘··/˘/˘·
Shall mount the breathless heavens and endure?10···/˘/˘·˘/
Vain was the trance through which a thrill of joy10··········
Passed for the nonce, when a vague hand, unled,10·˘········
Half shaped the image of this lovely boy10···/˘··/˘·
And caught the angel's garment as he fled.10···/˘/˘···
Leave, leave, distracted hand, the baffling stone,10··˘/˘··/˘·
And on that clay, thy fickle heart, begin.10·····/˘·˘/
Mould first some steadfast virtue of thine own10···/·/˘···
Out of the sodden substance of thy sin.10···/˘/˘···
They who wrought wonders by the Nile of old,10···/˘·····
Bequeathing their immortal part to us,10˘/˘·˘/˘···
Cast their own spirit first into the mould10···/˘·····
And were themselves the rock they fashioned thus.10··˘/···/˘·
Ever their docile and unwearied eye10/˘·/˘·˘/˘·
Traced the same ancient pageant to the grave,10···/˘/˘···
And awe made rich their spirit's husbandry10·····/˘/˘˘
With the perpetual refluence of its wave,10··˘/˘·····
Till 'twixt the desert and the constant Nile10···/˘··/˘·
Sphinx, pyramid, and awful temple grew,10·/˘˘·/˘/˘·
And the vast gods, self-knowing, learned to smile10·····/˘···
Beneath the sky's unalterable blue.10····˘/˘˘˘·
Long, long ere first the rapt Arcadian swain10·······/˘·
Heard Pan's wild music pulsing through the grove,10···/˘/˘···
His people's shepherds held paternal reign10·/˘/˘·˘/˘·
Beneath the large benignity of Jove.10····˘/˘˘··
Long mused the Delphic sibyl in her cave10···/˘/˘···
Ere mid his laurels she beheld the god,10···/˘·˘/··
And Beauty rose a virgin from the wave10·/˘··/˘···
In lands the foot of Heracles had trod.9·········
Athena reared her consecrated wall,10˘/˘··/˘·˘·
Poseidon laid its rocky basement sure,10˘/˘··/˘/˘·
When Theseus had the monstrous race in thrall10·····/˘···
And made the worship of his people pure.10···/˘··/˘·
Long had the stripling stood in silence, veiled,10···/˘··/˘·
Hearing the heroes' legend o'er and o'er,10/˘·/˘/˘···
Long in the keen palaestra striven, nor quailed10······/˘··
To tame the body to the task it bore,10···/˘·····
Ere soul and body, shaped by patient art,10···/˘··/˘·
Walked linked with the gods, like friend with friend,10·˘········
And reason, mirrored in the sage's heart,10·/˘/˘··/˘·
Beheld her purpose and confessed her end.10˘/·/˘·˘/··
Mould, then, thyself and let the marble be.10··˘/···/˘·
Look not to frailty for immortal themes,10···/˘·˘/˘·
Nor mock the travail of mortality10···˘/·˘/˘˘
With barren husks and harvesting of dreams.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.

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