Laurel · Percy Bysshe Shelley · Alastor, and Other Poems

Canto II

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) · 1813–1820

iambic pentameter · spenserian stanza · 441 lines · from Alastor, and Other Poems

The starlight smile of children, the sweet looksOf women, the fair breast from which I fed,The murmur of the unreposing brooks,And the green light which, shifting overhead,Some tangled bower of vines around me shed,The shells on the sea-sand, and the wild flowers,The lamp-light through the rafters cheerly spread,And on the twining flax--in life's young hoursThese sights and sounds did nurse my spirit's folded powers.

In Argolis, beside the echoing sea,Such impulses within my mortal frameArose, and they were dear to memory,Like tokens of the dead:--but others cameSoon, in another shape: the wondrous fameOf the past world, the vital words and deedsOf minds whom neither time nor change can tame,Traditions dark and old, whence evil creedsStart forth, and whose dim shade a stream of poison feeds.

I heard, as all have heard, the various storyOf human life, and wept unwilling tears.Feeble historians of its shame and glory,False disputants on all its hopes and fears,Victims who worshipped ruin, chroniclersOf daily scorn, and slaves who loathed their stateYet, flattering power, had given its ministersA throne of judgement in the grave:--'twas fate,That among such as these my youth should seek its mate.

The land in which I lived, by a fell baneWas withered up. Tyrants dwelt side by side,And stabled in our homes,--until the chainStifled the captive's cry, and to abideThat blasting curse men had no shame--all viedIn evil, slave and despot; fear with lustStrange fellowship through mutual hate had tied,Like two dark serpents tangled in the dust,Which on the paths of men their mingling poison thrust.

Earth, our bright home, its mountains and its waters,And the ethereal shapes which are suspendedOver its green expanse, and those fair daughters,The clouds, of Sun and Ocean, who have blendedThe colours of the air since first extendedIt cradled the young world, none wandered forthTo see or feel; a darkness had descendedOn every heart; the light which shows its worth,Must among gentle thoughts and fearless take its birth.

This vital world, this home of happy spirits,Was as a dungeon to my blasted kind;All that despair from murdered hope inheritsThey sought, and in their helpless misery blind,A deeper prison and heavier chains did find,And stronger tyrants:--a dark gulf before,The realm of a stern Ruler, yawned; behind,Terror and Time conflicting drove, and boreOn their tempestuous flood the shrieking wretch from shore.

Out of that Ocean's wrecks had Guilt and WoeFramed a dark dwelling for their homeless thought,And, starting at the ghosts which to and froGlide o'er its dim and gloomy strand, had broughtThe worship thence which they each other taught.Well might men loathe their life, well might they turnEven to the ills again from which they soughtSuch refuge after death!--well might they learnTo gaze on this fair world with hopeless unconcern!

For they all pined in bondage; body and soul,Tyrant and slave, victim and torturer, bentBefore one Power, to which supreme controlOver their will by their own weakness lent,Made all its many names omnipotent;All symbols of things evil, all divine;And hymns of blood or mockery, which rentThe air from all its fanes, did intertwineImposture's impious toils round each discordant shrine.

I heard, as all have heard, life's various story,And in no careless heart transcribed the tale;But, from the sneers of men who had grown hoaryIn shame and scorn, from groans of crowds made paleBy famine, from a mother's desolate wailO'er her polluted child, from innocent bloodPoured on the earth, and brows anxious and paleWith the heart's warfare, did I gather foodTo feed my many thoughts--a tameless multitude!

I wandered through the wrecks of days departedFar by the desolated shore, when evenO'er the still sea and jagged islets dartedThe light of moonrise; in the northern Heaven,Among the clouds near the horizon driven,The mountains lay beneath one planet pale;Around me, broken tombs and columns rivenLooked vast in twilight, and the sorrowing galeWaked in those ruins gray its everlasting wail!

I knew not who had framed these wonders then,Nor had I heard the story of their deeds;But dwellings of a race of mightier men,And monuments of less ungentle creedsTell their own tale to him who wisely heedsThe language which they speak; and now, to meThe moonlight making pale the blooming weeds,The bright stars shining in the breathless sea,Interpreted those scrolls of mortal mystery.

Such man has been, and such may yet become!Ay, wiser, greater, gentler even than theyWho on the fragments of yon shattered domeHave stamped the sign of power--I felt the swayOf the vast stream of ages bear awayMy floating thoughts--my heart beat loud and fast--Even as a storm let loose beneath the rayOf the still moon, my spirit onward passedBeneath truth's steady beams upon its tumult cast.

It shall be thus no more! too long, too long,Sons of the glorious dead, have ye lain boundIn darkness and in ruin!--Hope is strong,Justice and Truth their winged child have found--Awake! arise! until the mighty soundOf your career shall scatter in its gustThe thrones of the oppressor, and the groundHide the last altar's unregarded dust,Whose Idol has so long betrayed your impious trust!

It must be so--I will arise and wakenThe multitude, and like a sulphurous hill,Which on a sudden from its snows has shakenThe swoon of ages, it shall burst and fillThe world with cleansing fire; it must, it will--It may not be restrained!--and who shall standAmid the rocking earthquake steadfast still,But Laon? on high Freedom's desert landA tower whose marble walls the leagued storms withstand!

One summer night, in commune with the hopeThus deeply fed, amid those ruins grayI watched, beneath the dark sky's starry cope;And ever from that hour upon me layThe burden of this hope, and night or day,In vision or in dream, clove to my breast:Among mankind, or when gone far awayTo the lone shores and mountains, 'twas a guestWhich followed where I fled, and watched when I did rest.

These hopes found words through which my spirit soughtTo weave a bondage of such sympathy,As might create some response to the thoughtWhich ruled me now--and as the vapours lieBright in the outspread morning's radiancy,So were these thoughts invested with the lightOf language: and all bosoms made replyOn which its lustre streamed, whene'er it mightThrough darkness wide and deep those tranced spirits smite.

Yes, many an eye with dizzy tears was dim,And oft I thought to clasp my own heart's brother,When I could feel the listener's senses swim,And hear his breath its own swift gaspings smotherEven as my words evoked them--and another,And yet another, I did fondly deem,Felt that we all were sons of one great mother;And the cold truth such sad reverse did seemAs to awake in grief from some delightful dream.

Yes, oft beside the ruined labyrinthWhich skirts the hoary caves of the green deep,Did Laon and his friend, on one gray plinth,Round whose worn base the wild waves hiss and leap,Resting at eve, a lofty converse keep:And that this friend was false, may now be saidCalmly--that he like other men could weepTears which are lies, and could betray and spreadSnares for that guileless heart which for his own had bled.

Then, had no great aim recompensed my sorrow,I must have sought dark respite from its stressIn dreamless rest, in sleep that sees no morrow--For to tread life's dismaying wildernessWithout one smile to cheer, one voice to bless,Amid the snares and scoffs of human kind,Is hard--but I betrayed it not, nor lessWith love that scorned return sought to unbindThe interwoven clouds which make its wisdom blind.

With deathless minds which leave where they have passedA path of light, my soul communion knew;Till from that glorious intercourse, at last,As from a mine of magic store, I drewWords which were weapons;--round my heart there grewThe adamantine armour of their power;And from my fancy wings of golden hueSprang forth--yet not alone from wisdom's tower,A minister of truth, these plumes young Laon bore.

An orphan with my parents lived, whose eyesWere lodestars of delight, which drew me homeWhen I might wander forth; nor did I prizeAught human thing beneath Heaven's mighty domeBeyond this child; so when sad hours were come,And baffled hope like ice still clung to me,Since kin were cold, and friends had now becomeHeartless and false, I turned from all, to be,Cythna, the only source of tears and smiles to thee.

What wert thou then? A child most infantine,Yet wandering far beyond that innocent ageIn all but its sweet looks and mien divine;Even then, methought, with the world's tyrant rageA patient warfare thy young heart did wage,When those soft eyes of scarcely conscious thoughtSome tale, or thine own fancies, would engageTo overflow with tears, or converse fraughtWith passion, o'er their depths its fleeting light had wrought.

She moved upon this earth a shape of brightness,A power, that from its objects scarcely drewOne impulse of her being--in her lightnessMost like some radiant cloud of morning dew,Which wanders through the waste air's pathless blue,To nourish some far desert; she did seemBeside me, gathering beauty as she grew,Like the bright shade of some immortal dreamWhich walks, when tempest sleeps, the wave of life's dark stream.

As mine own shadow was this child to me,A second self, far dearer and more fair;Which clothed in undissolving radiancyAll those steep paths which languor and despairOf human things, had made so dark and bare,But which I trod alone--nor, till bereftOf friends, and overcome by lonely care,Knew I what solace for that loss was left,Though by a bitter wound my trusting heart was cleft.

Once she was dear, now she was all I hadTo love in human life--this playmate sweet,This child of twelve years old--so she was madeMy sole associate, and her willing feetWandered with mine where earth and ocean meet,Beyond the aereal mountains whose vast cellsThe unreposing billows ever beat,Through forests wild and old, and lawny dellsWhere boughs of incense droop over the emerald wells.

And warm and light I felt her clasping handWhen twined in mine; she followed where I went,Through the lone paths of our immortal land.It had no waste but some memorial lentWhich strung me to my toil--some monumentVital with mind; then Cythna by my side,Until the bright and beaming day were spent,Would rest, with looks entreating to abide,Too earnest and too sweet ever to be denied.

And soon I could not have refused her--thusFor ever, day and night, we two were ne'erParted, but when brief sleep divided us:And when the pauses of the lulling airOf noon beside the sea had made a lairFor her soothed senses, in my arms she slept,And I kept watch over her slumbers there,While, as the shifting visions over her swept,Amid her innocent rest by turns she smiled and wept.

And, in the murmur of her dreams was heardSometimes the name of Laon:--suddenlyShe would arise, and, like the secret birdWhom sunset wakens, fill the shore and skyWith her sweet accents, a wild melody!Hymns which my soul had woven to Freedom, strongThe source of passion, whence they rose, to be;Triumphant strains, which, like a spirit's tongue,To the enchanted waves that child of glory sung--

Her white arms lifted through the shadowy streamOf her loose hair. Oh, excellently greatSeemed to me then my purpose, the vast themeOf those impassioned songs, when Cythna sateAmid the calm which rapture doth createAfter its tumult, her heart vibrating,Her spirit o'er the Ocean's floating stateFrom her deep eyes far wandering, on the wingOf visions that were mine, beyond its utmost spring!

For, before Cythna loved it, had my songPeopled with thoughts the boundless universe,A mighty congregation, which were strongWhere'er they trod the darkness to disperseThe cloud of that unutterable curseWhich clings upon mankind:--all things becameSlaves to my holy and heroic verse,Earth, sea and sky, the planets, life and fameAnd fate, or whate'er else binds the world's wondrous frame.

And this beloved child thus felt the swayOf my conceptions, gathering like a cloudThe very wind on which it rolls away:Hers too were all my thoughts, ere yet, endowedWith music and with light, their fountains flowedIn poesy; and her still and earnest face,Pallid with feelings which intensely glowedWithin, was turned on mine with speechless grace,Watching the hopes which there her heart had learned to trace.

In me, communion with this purest beingKindled intenser zeal, and made me wiseIn knowledge, which, in hers mine own mind seeing,Left in the human world few mysteries:How without fear of evil or disguiseWas Cythna!--what a spirit strong and mild,Which death, or pain or peril could despise,Yet melt in tenderness! what genius wildYet mighty, was enclosed within one simple child!

New lore was this--old age with its gray hair,And wrinkled legends of unworthy things,And icy sneers, is nought: it cannot dareTo burst the chains which life for ever flingsOn the entangled soul's aspiring wings,So is it cold and cruel, and is madeThe careless slave of that dark power which bringsEvil, like blight, on man, who, still betrayed,Laughs o'er the grave in which his living hopes are laid.

Nor are the strong and the severe to keepThe empire of the world: thus Cythna taughtEven in the visions of her eloquent sleep,Unconscious of the power through which she wroughtThe woof of such intelligible thought,As from the tranquil strength which cradled layIn her smile-peopled rest, my spirit soughtWhy the deceiver and the slave has swayO'er heralds so divine of truth's arising day.

Within that fairest form, the female mind,Untainted by the poison clouds which restOn the dark world, a sacred home did find:But else, from the wide earth's maternal breast,Victorious Evil, which had dispossessedAll native power, had those fair children torn,And made them slaves to soothe his vile unrest,And minister to lust its joys forlorn,Till they had learned to breathe the atmosphere of scorn.

This misery was but coldly felt, till sheBecame my only friend, who had enduedMy purpose with a wider sympathy;Thus, Cythna mourned with me the servitudeIn which the half of humankind were mewedVictims of lust and hate, the slaves of slaves,She mourned that grace and power were thrown as foodTo the hyena lust, who, among graves,Over his loathed meal, laughing in agony, raves.

And I, still gazing on that glorious child,Even as these thoughts flushed o'er her:--'Cythna sweet,Well with the world art thou unreconciled;Never will peace and human nature meetTill free and equal man and woman greetDomestic peace; and ere this power can makeIn human hearts its calm and holy seat,This slavery must be broken'--as I spake,From Cythna's eyes a light of exultation brake.

She replied earnestly:--'It shall be mine,This task,--mine, Laon!--thou hast much to gain;Nor wilt thou at poor Cythna's pride repine,If she should lead a happy female trainTo meet thee over the rejoicing plain,When myriads at thy call shall throng aroundThe Golden City.'--Then the child did strainMy arm upon her tremulous heart, and woundHer own about my neck, till some reply she found.

I smiled, and spake not.--'Wherefore dost thou smileAt what I say? Laon, I am not weak,And, though my cheek might become pale the while,With thee, if thou desirest, will I seekThrough their array of banded slaves to wreakRuin upon the tyrants. I had thoughtIt was more hard to turn my unpractised cheekTo scorn and shame, and this beloved spotAnd thee, O dearest friend, to leave and murmur not.

'Whence came I what I am? Thou, Laon, knowestHow a young child should thus undaunted be;Methinks, it is a power which thou bestowest,Through which I seek, by most resembling thee,So to become most good and great and free;Yet far beyond this Ocean's utmost roar,In towers and huts are many like to me,Who, could they see thine eyes, or feel such loreAs I have learnt from them, like me would fear no more.

'Think'st thou that I shall speak unskilfully,And none will heed me? I remember now,How once, a slave in tortures doomed to die,Was saved, because in accents sweet and lowHe sung a song his Judge loved long ago,As he was led to death.--All shall relentWho hear me--tears, as mine have flowed, shall flow,Hearts beat as mine now beats, with such intentAs renovates the world; a will omnipotent!

'Yes, I will tread Pride's golden palaces,Through Penury's roofless huts and squalid cellsWill I descend, where'er in abjectnessWoman with some vile slave her tyrant dwells,There with the music of thine own sweet spellsWill disenchant the captives, and will pourFor the despairing, from the crystal wellsOf thy deep spirit, reason's mighty lore,And power shall then abound, and hope arise once more.

'Can man be free if woman be a slave?Chain one who lives, and breathes this boundless air,To the corruption of a closed grave!Can they whose mates are beasts, condemned to bearScorn, heavier far than toil or anguish, dareTo trample their oppressors? in their homeAmong their babes, thou knowest a curse would wearThe shape of woman--hoary Crime would comeBehind, and Fraud rebuild religion's tottering dome.

'I am a child:--I would not yet depart.When I go forth alone, bearing the lampAloft which thou hast kindled in my heart,Millions of slaves from many a dungeon dampShall leap in joy, as the benumbing crampOf ages leaves their limbs--no ill may harmThy Cythna ever--truth its radiant stampHas fixed, as an invulnerable charm,Upon her children's brow, dark Falsehood to disarm.

'Wait yet awhile for the appointed day--Thou wilt depart, and I with tears shall standWatching thy dim sail skirt the ocean gray;Amid the dwellers of this lonely landI shall remain alone--and thy commandShall then dissolve the world's unquiet trance,And, multitudinous as the desert sandBorne on the storm, its millions shall advance,Thronging round thee, the light of their deliverance.

'Then, like the forests of some pathless mountain,Which from remotest glens two warring windsInvolve in fire which not the loosened fountainOf broadest floods might quench, shall all the kindsOf evil, catch from our uniting mindsThe spark which must consume them;--Cythna thenWill have cast off the impotence that bindsHer childhood now, and through the paths of menWill pass, as the charmed bird that haunts the serpent's den.

'We part!--O Laon, I must dare nor tremble,To meet those looks no more!--Oh, heavy stroke!Sweet brother of my soul! can I dissembleThe agony of this thought?'--As thus she spokeThe gathered sobs her quivering accents broke,And in my arms she hid her beating breast.I remained still for tears--sudden she wokeAs one awakes from sleep, and wildly pressedMy bosom, her whole frame impetuously possessed.

'We part to meet again--but yon blue waste,Yon desert wide and deep, holds no recess,Within whose happy silence, thus embracedWe might survive all ills in one caress:Nor doth the grave--I fear 'tis passionless--Nor yon cold vacant Heaven:--we meet againWithin the minds of men, whose lips shall blessOur memory, and whose hopes its light retainWhen these dissevered bones are trodden in the plain.'

I could not speak, though she had ceased, for nowThe fountains of her feeling, swift and deep,Seemed to suspend the tumult of their flow;So we arose, and by the starlight steepWent homeward--neither did we speak nor weep,But, pale, were calm with passion--thus subduedLike evening shades that o'er the mountains creep,We moved towards our home; where, in this mood,Each from the other sought refuge in solitude.

Words in this poem 88

starlight n.: The light given by the stars.
wondrous adv.: In a wonderful or surprising manner or degree; wonderfully. [OE. wonders, adv. (later also adj.). See Wonder, n., and cf. -wards.]
bane v. t.: To be the bane of; to ruin. Fuller.
lust v. i.: To list; to like. [AS. lystan. See Lust, n., and cf. List to choose.]
dungeon n.: A close, dark prison, commondonjon or keep of a castle, these being used as prisons. [OE. donjoun highest tower of a castle, tower, prison, F. donjon tower or platform in the midst of a castle, turret, or closet on the top of a house, a keep of a]
blasted a.: Blighted; withered.
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.]
homeless a.: Destitute of a home. [AS.hamleas.]
unconcern n.: Want of concern; absence of anxiety; freedom from solicitude; indifference.
torturer n.: One who tortures; a tormentor.
hoary a.: White or whitish."The hoary willows."
famine n.: General scarcity of food; dearth; a want of provisions; destitution. [F. famine, fr. L. fames hunger; cf. Gr. hani loss, lack, ha to leave.]
tameless a.: Incapable of being tamed; wild; untamed; untamable. Bp. Hall.
moonrise n.: The rising of the moon above the horizon; also, the time of its rising.
ungentle a.: Not gentle; lacking good breeding or delicacy; harsh.
breathless a.: Spent with labor or violent action; out of breath.
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,]
glorious a.: Exhibiting attributes, qualities, or acts that are worthy of or receive glory; noble; praiseworthy; excellent; splendid; illustrious; inspiring admiration; as, glorious deeds. [OF. glorios, glorious, F. glorieux, fr. L. gloriosus. See Glory, n.]
career n.: A race course: the ground run over. [F. carrière race course, high road, street, fr. L. carrus wagon. See Car.]
oppressor n.: One who oppresses; one who imposes unjust burdens on others; one who harasses others with unjust laws or unreasonable severity. [L.]
idol n.: An image or representation of anything. [OE. idole, F. idole, L. idolum, fr. Gr. Wit, and cf. Eidolon.]
waken v. i.: To wake; to cease to sleep; to be awakened. [OE. waknen, AS. wæcnan; akin to Goth. gawaknan. See Wake, v. i.]
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]
commune n.: The commonalty; the common people. [F., fr. commun. See Common.]
starry a.: Abounding with stars; adorned with stars.
lone n.: A lane. See Loanin.
outspread v. t.: To spread out; to expand; -- usually as a past part. or adj.
radiancy n.: The quality of being radiant; brilliancy; effulgence; vivid brightness; as, the radiance of the sun.
lustre n.: A period of five years; a lustrum. [L. lustrum: cf. F. lustre.]
fondly adv.: Foolishly. Verstegan (1673).
deem v. t.: To decide; to judge; to sentence; to condemn. [OE. demen to judge, condemn, AS. d, fr. d doom; akin to OFries. d, OS. ad, D. doemen, OHG. tuommen, Icel. dæma, Sw. dömma, Dan. dömme, Goth. d. See Doom, n., an]
guileless a.: Free from guile; artless.
dreamless a.: Free from, or without, dreams. Camden.
deathless a.: Not subject to death, destruction, or extinction; immortal; undying; imperishable; as, deathless beings; deathless fame.
armour n.: Defensive arms for the body; any clothing or covering worn to protect one's person in battle. [OE. armure, fr. F. armure, OF. armeure, fr. L. armatura. See Armature.]
aught n.: Property; possession. [AS. , fr. agan to own, p. p. ahte.]
clung a.: Wasted away; shrunken. [Prop. p. p. fr. OE. clingen to wither. See Cling, v. i.]
heartless a.: Without a heart.
infantine a.: Infantile; childish. [Cf. F. enfantin.]
wage v. i.: To bind one's self; to engage.
fraught n.: A freight; a cargo. [OE.fraight, fraght; akin to Dan. fragt, Sw. frakt, D. vracht, G. fracht, cf. OHG. fr merit, reward; perh. from corresponding to E. for + The root of E. own. Cf.]
pathless a.: Having no beaten path or way; untrodden; impenetrable; as, pathless woods.
solace n.: Comfort in grief; alleviation of grief or anxiety; also, that which relieves in distress; that which cheers or consoles; relief. [OF. solas, ssoulaz, L. solacium, solatium, fr. solari to comfort, console. Cf. Console, v. t.]
playmate n.: A companion in diversions; a playfellow.
lawny a.: Having a lawn; characterized by a lawn or by lawns; like a lawn.
went n.: Course; way; path; journey; direction.
lair n.: A place in which to lie or rest; especially, the bed or couch of a wild beast. [OE. leir, AS. leger; akin to D. leger, G. lager couch, lair, OHG. laga, Goth. ligrs, and to E. lie. See Lie to be prostrate, and cf. Layer, Leaguer.]
enchanted a.: Under the power of enchantment; possessed or exercised by enchanters; as, an enchanted castle.
excellently adv.: In an excellent manner; well in a high degree.
impassioned p. p.: Actuated or characterized by passion or zeal; showing warmth of feeling; ardent; animated; excited; as, an impassioned orator or discourse.
sate v. t.: To satisfy the desire or appetite of; to satiate; to glut; to surfeit. [Probably shortened fr. satiate: cf. L. satus full. See Satiate.]
peopled a.: Stocked with, or as with, people; inhabited.
poesy n.: The art of composing poems; poetical skill or faculty; as, the heavenly gift of poesy. [F. poésie (cf. It. poesia), L. poesis, from Gr. Posy.]
intensely adv.: Intently. J. Spencer.
speechless a.: Destitute or deprived of the faculty of speech.
despise v. t.: To look down upon with disfavor or contempt; to contemn; to scorn; to disdain; to have a low opinion or contemptuous dislike of. [OF. despis-, in some forms of despire to despise, fr. L. despicere, despectum, to look down upon, despise; de- + spicere, specere, to look. See Spy, and cf. Des]
aspiring a.: That aspires; as, an Aspiring mind.
maternal a.: Of or pertaining to a mother; becoming to a mother; motherly; as, maternal love; maternal tenderness. [F. maternel, L. maternus, fr. mater mother. See Mother.]
soothe v. t.: To assent to as true. Testament of Love. [Originally, to assent to as true; OE. so to verify, AS. ges to prove the truth of, to bear witness. See Sooth, a.]
unrest n.: Want of rest or repose; unquietness; sleeplessness; uneasiness; disquietude.
forlorn a.: Deserted abandoned; lost. [OE., p.p. of forlesen to lose utterly, AS. forleósan (p.p. forloren); pref. for- + leósan (in comp.) to lose; cf. D. verliezen to lose, G. verlieren, Sw. förlor]
coldly adv.: In a cold manner; without warmth, animation, or feeling; with indifference; calmly.
hyena n.: Any carnivorous mammal of the family Hyænidæ, of which three living species are known. They are large and strong, but cowardly. [L. hyaena, Gr. hyène. See Sow female hog.]
hast: , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
repine v. i.: To fail; to wane. [Pref. re- + pine to languish.]
wreak v. i.: To reck; to care.
undaunted a.: Not daunted; not subdued or depressed by fear.
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.]
relent v. i.: To become less rigid or hard; to yield; to dissolve; to melt; to deliquesce. [F. ralentir, fr. L. pref. re- re- + ad to + lentus pliant, flexible, slow. See Lithe.]
roofless a.: Having no roof; as, a roofless house.
squalid a.: Dirty through neglect; foul; filthy; extremely dirty. [L. squalidus, fr. squalere to be foul or filthy.]
abjectness n.: The state of being abject; abasement; meanness; servility.
despairing a.: Feeling or expressing despair; hopeless.
rebuild v. t.: To build again, as something which has been demolished; to construct anew; as, to rebuild a house, a wall, a wharf, or a city.
depart v. i.: To part; to divide; to separate. [OE. departen to divide, part, depart, F. départir to divide, distribute, se départir to separate one's self, depart; pref. dé- (L. de) + partir to part, depart,]
invulnerable a.: Incapable of being wounded, or of receiving injury. [L. invulnerabilis: cf. F. invulnérable. See In- not, and Vulnerable.]
disarm v. t.: To deprive of arms; to take away the weapons of; to deprive of the means of attack or defense; to render defenseless. [OE. desarmen, F. désarmer; pref. dés- (L. dis-) + armer to arm. See Arm.]
awhile adv.: For a while; for some time; for a short time. [Adj. a + while time, interval.]
unquiet v. t.: To disquiet. Ld. Herbert. [1st pref. un- + quiet.]
multitudinous a.: Consisting of a multitude; manifold in number or condition; as, multitudinous waves.
impotence n.: The quality or condition of being impotent; want of strength or power, animal, intellectual, or moral; weakness; feebleness; inability; imbecility. [L. impotenia inability, poverty, want of moderation. See Impotent.]
childhood n.: The state of being a child; the time in which persons are children; the condition or time from infancy to puberty. [AS. cildhad; cild child + -had. See Child, and hood.]
dissemble v. t.: To hide under a false semblance or seeming; to feign (something) not to be what it really is; to put an untrue appearance upon; to disguise; to mask. [OF. dissembler to be dissimilar; pref. dis- (L. dis-) + F. sembler to seem, L. simulare to simulate; cf. L. dissimulare to dissemble. See Simulate, and cf. Diss]
spoke n.: The radius or ray of a wheel; one of the small bars which are inserted in the hub, or nave, and which serve to support the rim or felly. [OE. spoke, spake, AS, spaca; akin to D. speek, LG. speke, OHG. speihha, G. speiche. sq. root170. Cf. Spike a nail.]
broke v. i.: To transact business for another. Brome. [See Broker, and cf. Brook.]
caress n.: An act of endearment; any act or expression of affection; an embracing, or touching, with tenderness. [F. caresse, It. carezza, LL. caritia dearness, fr. L. carus dear. See Charity.]
passionless a.: Void of passion; without anger or emotion; not easily excited; calm.
homeward a.: Being in the direction of home; as, the homeward way.

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

About this text

Canto II is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley — Volume 1, Project Gutenberg ebook #4797; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: Percy Bysshe Shelley, Canto II, in Alastor, and Other Poems (1813–1820), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #4797, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/shelley-poems/canto-ii.html, id L00205.

Form and metre

Canto II is 441 lines in 49 stanzas of 9 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABABBCBCC, complete in 42 of its 49 stanzas; the stanza is the Spenserian stanza. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%). 94% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.3 syllables. 59 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 49% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.

See other poems in the Spenserian stanza, 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 ABABBCBCC looks^A · fed^B · brooks^A · overhead^B · shed^B · flowers^C · spread^B · hours^C · powers^C
2 ABABBCBCC sea^A · frame^B · memory^A · came^B · fame^B · deeds^C · tame^B · creeds^C · feeds^C
3 ABABBCBCC story^A · tears^B · glory^A · fears^B · chroniclers^B · state^C · ministers^B · fate^C · mate^C
4 ABABBCBCC bane^A · side^B · chain^A · abide^B · vied^B · lust^C · tied^B · dust^C · thrust^C
5 ABABBCBCC waters^A · suspended^B · daughters^A · blended^B · extended^B · forth^C · descended^B · worth^C · birth^C
6 ABABBCBCC spirits^A · kind^B · inherits^A · blind^B · find^B · before^C · behind^B · bore^C · shore^C
7 ABABBCBCC woe^A · thought^B · fro^A · brought^B · taught^B · turn^C · sought^B · learn^C · unconcern^C
8 ABABBCBCC soul^A · bent^B · control^A · lent^B · omnipotent^B · divine^C · rent^B · intertwine^C · shrine^C
9 ABABBCBCC story^A · tale^B · hoary^A · pale^B · wail^B · blood^C · pale^B · food^C · multitude^C
10 ABABBCBCC departed^A · even^B · darted^A · heaven^B · driven^B · pale^C · riven^B · gale^C · wail^C
11 ABABBCBCC then^A · deeds^B · men^A · creeds^B · heeds^B · me^C · weeds^B · sea^C · mystery^C
12 ABABBCBCC become^A · they^B · dome^A · sway^B · away^B · fast^C · ray^B · passed^C · cast^C
13 ABABBCBCC long^A · bound^B · strong^A · found^B · sound^B · gust^C · ground^B · dust^C · trust^C
14 ABABBCBCC waken^A · hill^B · shaken^A · fill^B · will^B · stand^C · still^B · land^C · withstand^C
15 ABABBCBCC hope^A · gray^B · cope^A · lay^B · day^B · breast^C · away^B · guest^C · rest^C
16 A-AB-CBCC sought^A · sympathy · thought^A · lie^B · radiancy · light^C · reply^B · might^C · smite^C
17 ABABBCBCC dim^A · brother^B · swim^A · smother^B · another^B · deem^C · mother^B · seem^C · dream^C
18 ABABBCBCC labyrinth^A · deep^B · plinth^A · leap^B · keep^B · said^C · weep^B · spread^C · bled^C
19 ABABBCBCC sorrow^A · stress^B · morrow^A · wilderness^B · bless^B · kind^C · less^B · unbind^C · blind^C
20 ABABBCBC- passed^A · knew^B · last^A · drew^B · grew^B · power^C · hue^B · tower^C · bore
21 ABABCDCDD eyes^A · home^B · prize^A · dome^B · come^C · me^D · become^C · be^D · thee^D
22 ABABBCBCC infantine^A · age^B · divine^A · rage^B · wage^B · thought^C · engage^B · fraught^C · wrought^C
23 ABABBCBCC brightness^A · drew^B · lightness^A · dew^B · blue^B · seem^C · grew^B · dream^C · stream^C
24 ABABBCBCC me^A · fair^B · radiancy^A · despair^B · bare^B · bereft^C · care^B · left^C · cleft^C
25 ABABBCBCC had^A · sweet^B · made^A · feet^B · meet^B · cells^C · beat^B · dells^C · wells^C
26 ABABBCBCC hand^A · went^B · land^A · lent^B · monument^B · side^C · spent^B · abide^C · denied^C
27 ABABBCBCC thus^A · ne'er^B · us^A · air^B · lair^B · slept^C · there^B · swept^C · wept^C
28 A-AB--BCC heard^A · suddenly · bird^A · sky^B · melody · strong · be^B · tongue^C · sung^C
29 ABABBCBCC stream^A · great^B · theme^A · sate^B · create^B · vibrating^C · state^B · wing^C · spring^C
30 ABABBCBCC song^A · universe^B · strong^A · disperse^B · curse^B · became^C · verse^B · fame^C · frame^C
31 ABABCDCDD sway^A · cloud^B · away^A · endowed^B · flowed^C · face^D · glowed^C · grace^D · trace^D
32 ABABBCBCC being^A · wise^B · seeing^A · mysteries^B · disguise^B · mild^C · despise^B · wild^C · child^C
33 ABABBCBCC hair^A · things^B · dare^A · flings^B · wings^B · made^C · brings^B · betrayed^C · laid^C
34 ABABBCBCC keep^A · taught^B · sleep^A · wrought^B · thought^B · lay^C · sought^B · sway^C · day^C
35 ABABBCBCC mind^A · rest^B · find^A · breast^B · dispossessed^B · torn^C · unrest^B · forlorn^C · scorn^C
36 ABABBCBCC she^A · endued^B · sympathy^A · servitude^B · mewed^B · slaves^C · food^B · graves^C · raves^C
37 ABABBCBCC child^A · sweet^B · unreconciled^A · meet^B · greet^B · make^C · seat^B · spake^C · brake^C
38 ABABBCBCC mine^A · gain^B · repine^A · train^B · plain^B · around^C · strain^B · wound^C · found^C
39 ABABBCBCC smile^A · weak^B · while^A · seek^B · wreak^B · thought^C · cheek^B · spot^C · not^C
40 ABABBCBCC knowest^A · be^B · bestowest^A · thee^B · free^B · roar^C · me^B · lore^C · more^C
41 ---AABABB unskilfully · now · die · low^A · ago^A · relent^B · flow^A · intent^B · omnipotent^B
42 ABABBCBCC palaces^A · cells^B · abjectness^A · dwells^B · spells^B · pour^C · wells^B · lore^C · more^C
43 ABABBCBCC slave^A · air^B · grave^A · bear^B · dare^B · home^C · wear^B · come^C · dome^C
44 ABABBCBCC depart^A · lamp^B · heart^A · damp^B · cramp^B · harm^C · stamp^B · charm^C · disarm^C
45 ABABBCBCC day^A · stand^B · gray^A · land^B · command^B · trance^C · sand^B · advance^C · deliverance^C
46 ABABBCBCC mountain^A · winds^B · fountain^A · kinds^B · minds^B · then^C · binds^B · men^C · den^C
47 ABABBCBCC tremble^A · stroke^B · dissemble^A · spoke^B · broke^B · breast^C · woke^B · pressed^C · possessed^C
48 ABABBCBCC waste^A · recess^B · embraced^A · caress^B · passionless^B · again^C · bless^B · retain^C · plain^C
49 -A-AABABB now · deep^A · flow · steep^A · weep^A · subdued^B · creep^A · mood^B · solitude^B

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
The starlight smile of children, the sweet looks	10	·/···/˘···
Of women, the fair breast from which I fed,	10	·/˘·······
The murmur of the unreposing brooks,	10	·/˘·······
And the green light which, shifting overhead,	10	·····/˘/˘/
Some tangled bower of vines around me shed,	10	·/˘/······
The shells on the sea-sand, and the wild flowers,	11	·········/˘
The lamp-light through the rafters cheerly spread,	10	·····/˘/˘·
And on the twining flax--in life's young hours	11	···/˘····/˘
These sights and sounds did nurse my spirit's folded powers.	12	·······/˘/˘/
In Argolis, beside the echoing sea,	10	····˘/·/˘·
Such impulses within my mortal frame	10	·/˘˘···/˘·
Arose, and they were dear to memory,	10	˘/·····/˘˘
Like tokens of the dead:--but others came	10	·/˘····/˘·
Soon, in another shape: the wondrous fame	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Of the past world, the vital words and deeds	10	·····/˘···
Of minds whom neither time nor change can tame,	10	···/˘·····
Traditions dark and old, whence evil creeds	10	˘/˘····/˘·
Start forth, and whose dim shade a stream of poison feeds.	12	·········/˘·
I heard, as all have heard, the various story	11	·······/˘/˘
Of human life, and wept unwilling tears.	10	·/˘···˘/˘·
Feeble historians of its shame and glory,	11	/˘˘/˘····/˘
False disputants on all its hopes and fears,	10	··········
Victims who worshipped ruin, chroniclers	10	/˘·/˘/˘/˘˘
Of daily scorn, and slaves who loathed their state	10	·/˘·······
Yet, flattering power, had given its ministers	11	·/˘˘/·/·/˘˘
A throne of judgement in the grave:--'twas fate,	10	···/˘·····
That among such as these my youth should seek its mate.	12	············
The land in which I lived, by a fell bane	10	··········
Was withered up. Tyrants dwelt side by side,	10	·/˘·/˘····
And stabled in our homes,--until the chain	10	·/˘·/·····
Stifled the captive's cry, and to abide	10	/˘·/˘···˘/
That blasting curse men had no shame--all vied	10	·/˘·······
In evil, slave and despot; fear with lust	10	·/˘··/˘···
Strange fellowship through mutual hate had tied,	10	·/˘··/˘···
Like two dark serpents tangled in the dust,	10	···/˘/˘···
Which on the paths of men their mingling poison thrust.	12	·······/˘/˘·
Earth, our bright home, its mountains and its waters,	11	·/···/˘··/˘
And the ethereal shapes which are suspended	11	··˘/˘···˘/˘
Over its green expanse, and those fair daughters,	11	····˘/···/˘
The clouds, of Sun and Ocean, who have blended	11	·····/˘··/˘
The colours of the air since first extended	11	·/˘·····˘/˘
It cradled the young world, none wandered forth	10	·/˘····/˘·
To see or feel; a darkness had descended	11	·····/˘·˘/˘
On every heart; the light which shows its worth,	10	·/˘·······
Must among gentle thoughts and fearless take its birth.	12	···/˘··/˘···
This vital world, this home of happy spirits,	11	·/˘····/˘/˘
Was as a dungeon to my blasted kind;	10	···/˘··/˘·
All that despair from murdered hope inherits	11	··˘/·/˘·˘/˘
They sought, and in their helpless misery blind,	10	·····/˘/˘·
A deeper prison and heavier chains did find,	11	·/˘/˘·/˘···
And stronger tyrants:--a dark gulf before,	10	·/˘/˘·····
The realm of a stern Ruler, yawned; behind,	10	·····/˘···
Terror and Time conflicting drove, and bore	10	/˘··˘/˘···
On their tempestuous flood the shrieking wretch from shore.	12	···/˘··/˘···
Out of that Ocean's wrecks had Guilt and Woe	10	···/˘·····
Framed a dark dwelling for their homeless thought,	10	···/˘··/˘·
And, starting at the ghosts which to and fro	10	·/˘·······
Glide o'er its dim and gloomy strand, had brought	10	·····/˘···
The worship thence which they each other taught.	10	·/˘····/˘·
Well might men loathe their life, well might they turn	10	··········
Even to the ills again from which they sought	10	/···˘/····
Such refuge after death!--well might they learn	10	·/˘·······
To gaze on this fair world with hopeless unconcern!	12	·······/˘·˘/
For they all pined in bondage; body and soul,	11	·····/˘/˘··
Tyrant and slave, victim and torturer, bent	10	/˘··/˘·/˘·
Before one Power, to which supreme control	10	···/··˘/˘/
Over their will by their own weakness lent,	10	·······/˘·
Made all its many names omnipotent;	10	···/˘·˘/˘˘
All symbols of things evil, all divine;	10	·/˘··/˘·˘/
And hymns of blood or mockery, which rent	10	·····/˘˘··
The air from all its fanes, did intertwine	10	·······˘˘/
Imposture's impious toils round each discordant shrine.	13	···˘/˘···˘/˘·
I heard, as all have heard, life's various story,	11	·······/˘/˘
And in no careless heart transcribed the tale;	10	···/˘·˘/··
But, from the sneers of men who had grown hoary	11	·········/˘
In shame and scorn, from groans of crowds made pale	10	··········
By famine, from a mother's desolate wail	10	·/˘··/˘/˘·
O'er her polluted child, from innocent blood	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Poured on the earth, and brows anxious and pale	10	······/˘··
With the heart's warfare, did I gather food	10	···/···/˘·
To feed my many thoughts--a tameless multitude!	11	···/··/˘/˘·
I wandered through the wrecks of days departed	11	·/˘·····˘/˘
Far by the desolated shore, when even	11	···/˘˘˘··/˘
O'er the still sea and jagged islets darted	10	······/˘/˘
The light of moonrise; in the northern Heaven,	11	···/˘··/˘/˘
Among the clouds near the horizon driven,	11	······˘/˘/˘
The mountains lay beneath one planet pale;	10	·/˘····/˘·
Around me, broken tombs and columns riven	11	···/˘··/˘/˘
Looked vast in twilight, and the sorrowing gale	10	···/···/˘·
Waked in those ruins gray its everlasting wail!	12	···/˘···˘/˘·
I knew not who had framed these wonders then,	10	·······/˘·
Nor had I heard the story of their deeds;	10	·····/˘···
But dwellings of a race of mightier men,	10	·/˘····/˘·
And monuments of less ungentle creeds	10	·/˘˘··˘/˘·
Tell their own tale to him who wisely heeds	10	·······/˘·
The language which they speak; and now, to me	10	·/˘·······
The moonlight making pale the blooming weeds,	10	·/·/˘··/˘·
The bright stars shining in the breathless sea,	10	···/˘··/˘·
Interpreted those scrolls of mortal mystery.	11	˘/˘···/˘/˘˘
Such man has been, and such may yet become!	10	········˘/
Ay, wiser, greater, gentler even than they	10	·//˘/˘/˘··
Who on the fragments of yon shattered dome	10	···/˘··/˘·
Have stamped the sign of power--I felt the sway	10	·····/····
Of the vast stream of ages bear away	10	·····/˘·˘/
My floating thoughts--my heart beat loud and fast--	10	·/˘·······
Even as a storm let loose beneath the ray	10	/·········
Of the still moon, my spirit onward passed	10	·····/˘/˘·
Beneath truth's steady beams upon its tumult cast.	12	···/˘····/˘·
It shall be thus no more! too long, too long,	10	··········
Sons of the glorious dead, have ye lain bound	10	···/˘·····
In darkness and in ruin!--Hope is strong,	10	·/˘··/˘···
Justice and Truth their winged child have found--	10	/˘····˘···
Awake! arise! until the mighty sound	10	˘/˘/···/˘·
Of your career shall scatter in its gust	10	··˘/·/˘···
The thrones of the oppressor, and the ground	10	····˘/˘···
Hide the last altar's unregarded dust,	10	···/˘·····
Whose Idol has so long betrayed your impious trust!	13	·/˘···˘/·˘/˘·
It must be so--I will arise and waken	11	······˘/·/˘
The multitude, and like a sulphurous hill,	11	·/˘····/˘˘·
Which on a sudden from its snows has shaken	11	···/˘····/˘
The swoon of ages, it shall burst and fill	10	···/˘·····
The world with cleansing fire; it must, it will--	10	···/˘/····
It may not be restrained!--and who shall stand	10	····˘/····
Amid the rocking earthquake steadfast still,	10	˘/·/˘/·/··
But Laon? on high Freedom's desert land	10	·····/˘/˘·
A tower whose marble walls the leagued storms withstand!	11	·/·/˘····˘/
One summer night, in commune with the hope	10	·/˘··/˘···
Thus deeply fed, amid those ruins gray	10	·/˘·˘/·/˘·
I watched, beneath the dark sky's starry cope;	10	·······/˘·
And ever from that hour upon me lay	10	·/··/˘····
The burden of this hope, and night or day,	10	·/˘·······
In vision or in dream, clove to my breast:	10	·/˘·······
Among mankind, or when gone far away	10	··//····˘/
To the lone shores and mountains, 'twas a guest	10	·····/˘···
Which followed where I fled, and watched when I did rest.	12	·/˘·········
These hopes found words through which my spirit sought	10	·······/˘·
To weave a bondage of such sympathy,	10	···/˘··/˘˘
As might create some response to the thought	10	··˘/·˘/···
Which ruled me now--and as the vapours lie	10	·······/˘·
Bright in the outspread morning's radiancy,	10	···˘//˘···
So were these thoughts invested with the light	10	····˘/˘···
Of language: and all bosoms made reply	10	·/˘··/˘·˘/
On which its lustre streamed, whene'er it might	11	···/˘······
Through darkness wide and deep those tranced spirits smite.	11	·/˘·····/˘·
Yes, many an eye with dizzy tears was dim,	10	·/···/˘···
And oft I thought to clasp my own heart's brother,	11	·········/˘
When I could feel the listener's senses swim,	10	·····/˘/˘·
And hear his breath its own swift gaspings smother	11	·······/˘/˘
Even as my words evoked them--and another,	11	/···˘/··˘/˘
And yet another, I did fondly deem,	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Felt that we all were sons of one great mother;	11	·········/˘
And the cold truth such sad reverse did seem	10	······˘/··
As to awake in grief from some delightful dream.	12	··˘/····˘/˘·
Yes, oft beside the ruined labyrinth	10	··˘/·/˘/˘·
Which skirts the hoary caves of the green deep,	10	···/˘·····
Did Laon and his friend, on one gray plinth,	10	··········
Round whose worn base the wild waves hiss and leap,	10	··········
Resting at eve, a lofty converse keep:	10	/˘···/˘/˘·
And that this friend was false, may now be said	10	··········
Calmly--that he like other men could weep	10	/˘···/˘···
Tears which are lies, and could betray and spread	10	······˘/··
Snares for that guileless heart which for his own had bled.	12	···/˘·······
Then, had no great aim recompensed my sorrow,	11	·····/˘··/˘
I must have sought dark respite from its stress	10	·····/˘···
In dreamless rest, in sleep that sees no morrow--	11	·/˘······/˘
For to tread life's dismaying wilderness	10	····˘/˘/˘˘
Without one smile to cheer, one voice to bless,	10	··········
Amid the snares and scoffs of human kind,	10	˘/·····/˘·
Is hard--but I betrayed it not, nor less	10	····˘/····
With love that scorned return sought to unbind	10	····˘/··˘/
The interwoven clouds which make its wisdom blind.	12	··˘/˘····/˘·
With deathless minds which leave where they have passed	10	·/˘·······
A path of light, my soul communion knew;	10	······˘/˘·
Till from that glorious intercourse, at last,	10	···/˘/˘···
As from a mine of magic store, I drew	10	·····/˘···
Words which were weapons;--round my heart there grew	10	···/˘·····
The adamantine armour of their power;	11	·····/˘··/˘
And from my fancy wings of golden hue	10	···/˘··/˘·
Sprang forth--yet not alone from wisdom's tower,	11	····˘/·/˘/˘
A minister of truth, these plumes young Laon bore.	11	·/˘········
An orphan with my parents lived, whose eyes	10	·/˘··/˘···
Were lodestars of delight, which drew me home	10	·/··˘/····
When I might wander forth; nor did I prize	10	···/˘·····
Aught human thing beneath Heaven's mighty dome	11	·/˘···/˘/˘·
Beyond this child; so when sad hours were come,	10	·······/··
And baffled hope like ice still clung to me,	10	·/˘·······
Since kin were cold, and friends had now become	10	········˘/
Heartless and false, I turned from all, to be,	10	/˘········
Cythna, the only source of tears and smiles to thee.	12	···/˘·······
What wert thou then? A child most infantine,	10	·······/˘˘
Yet wandering far beyond that innocent age	10	·/˘····/˘·
In all but its sweet looks and mien divine;	10	········˘/
Even then, methought, with the world's tyrant rage	10	/·˘/···/˘·
A patient warfare thy young heart did wage,	10	·/˘/······
When those soft eyes of scarcely conscious thought	10	·····/˘/˘·
Some tale, or thine own fancies, would engage	10	·····/˘·˘/
To overflow with tears, or converse fraught	10	·/˘····/˘·
With passion, o'er their depths its fleeting light had wrought.	12	·/˘····/˘···
She moved upon this earth a shape of brightness,	11	·········/˘
A power, that from its objects scarcely drew	10	·/···/˘/˘·
One impulse of her being--in her lightness	11	·/˘··/˘··/˘
Most like some radiant cloud of morning dew,	10	···/˘··/˘·
Which wanders through the waste air's pathless blue,	10	·/˘····/˘·
To nourish some far desert; she did seem	10	·/˘··/˘···
Beside me, gathering beauty as she grew,	10	˘/·/˘/˘···
Like the bright shade of some immortal dream	10	······˘/˘·
Which walks, when tempest sleeps, the wave of life's dark stream.	12	···/˘·······
As mine own shadow was this child to me,	10	···/······
A second self, far dearer and more fair;	10	·/˘··/˘···
Which clothed in undissolving radiancy	10	··········
All those steep paths which languor and despair	10	·····/˘·˘/
Of human things, had made so dark and bare,	10	·/˘·······
But which I trod alone--nor, till bereft	10	····˘/··˘/
Of friends, and overcome by lonely care,	10	···/˘··/˘·
Knew I what solace for that loss was left,	10	···/˘·····
Though by a bitter wound my trusting heart was cleft.	12	···/˘··/˘···
Once she was dear, now she was all I had	10	··········
To love in human life--this playmate sweet,	10	···/˘··/··
This child of twelve years old--so she was made	10	··········
My sole associate, and her willing feet	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Wandered with mine where earth and ocean meet,	10	/˘·····/˘·
Beyond the aereal mountains whose vast cells	10	·····/˘···
The unreposing billows ever beat,	10	·····/˘/˘·
Through forests wild and old, and lawny dells	10	·/˘····/˘·
Where boughs of incense droop over the emerald wells.	11	···˘/···/˘·
And warm and light I felt her clasping hand	10	·······/˘·
When twined in mine; she followed where I went,	10	·····/˘···
Through the lone paths of our immortal land.	10	·····/˘/˘·
It had no waste but some memorial lent	10	······˘/˘·
Which strung me to my toil--some monument	10	·······/˘˘
Vital with mind; then Cythna by my side,	10	/˘········
Until the bright and beaming day were spent,	10	·····/˘···
Would rest, with looks entreating to abide,	10	········˘/
Too earnest and too sweet ever to be denied.	11	·/˘···/··˘/
And soon I could not have refused her--thus	10	······˘/··
For ever, day and night, we two were ne'er	10	·/˘·······
Parted, but when brief sleep divided us:	10	/˘····˘/˘·
And when the pauses of the lulling air	10	···/˘··/˘·
Of noon beside the sea had made a lair	10	··˘/······
For her soothed senses, in my arms she slept,	10	···/˘·····
And I kept watch over her slumbers there,	10	·······/˘·
While, as the shifting visions over her swept,	10	···/˘/˘···
Amid her innocent rest by turns she smiled and wept.	12	˘/·/˘·······
And, in the murmur of her dreams was heard	10	···/˘·····
Sometimes the name of Laon:--suddenly	10	˘/·····/˘˘
She would arise, and, like the secret bird	10	··˘/···/˘·
Whom sunset wakens, fill the shore and sky	10	·/·/˘·····
With her sweet accents, a wild melody!	10	···/˘··/˘˘
Hymns which my soul had woven to Freedom, strong	11	·····/˘·/˘·
The source of passion, whence they rose, to be;	10	···/˘·····
Triumphant strains, which, like a spirit's tongue,	10	˘/˘····/˘·
To the enchanted waves that child of glory sung--	12	··˘/˘····/˘·
Her white arms lifted through the shadowy stream	10	···/˘··/˘·
Of her loose hair. Oh, excellently great	10	·····/˘˘˘·
Seemed to me then my purpose, the vast theme	10	·····/˘···
Of those impassioned songs, when Cythna sate	10	··˘/˘·····
Amid the calm which rapture doth create	10	˘/···/˘·˘/
After its tumult, her heart vibrating,	10	···/˘··/˘˘
Her spirit o'er the Ocean's floating state	10	·/˘··/˘/˘·
From her deep eyes far wandering, on the wing	10	·····/˘···
Of visions that were mine, beyond its utmost spring!	12	·/˘······/··
For, before Cythna loved it, had my song	10	··········
Peopled with thoughts the boundless universe,	10	/˘···/˘/˘·
A mighty congregation, which were strong	10	·/˘·˘/˘···
Where'er they trod the darkness to disperse	11	˘˘/···/˘·˘/
The cloud of that unutterable curse	10	····˘/˘˘˘·
Which clings upon mankind:--all things became	10	····//··˘/
Slaves to my holy and heroic verse,	10	···/˘·˘/˘·
Earth, sea and sky, the planets, life and fame	10	·····/˘···
And fate, or whate'er else binds the world's wondrous frame.	13	···˘˘/····/˘·
And this beloved child thus felt the sway	10	··˘/˘·····
Of my conceptions, gathering like a cloud	10	··˘/˘/˘···
The very wind on which it rolls away:	10	·/˘·····˘/
Hers too were all my thoughts, ere yet, endowed	10	········˘/
With music and with light, their fountains flowed	10	·/˘····/˘·
In poesy; and her still and earnest face,	11	·/˘˘····/˘·
Pallid with feelings which intensely glowed	10	/˘·/˘·˘/˘·
Within, was turned on mine with speechless grace,	10	·······/˘·
Watching the hopes which there her heart had learned to trace.	12	/˘··········
In me, communion with this purest being	11	··˘/˘··/˘/˘
Kindled intenser zeal, and made me wise	10	/˘········
In knowledge, which, in hers mine own mind seeing,	11	·/˘······/˘
Left in the human world few mysteries:	10	···/˘··/˘˘
How without fear of evil or disguise	10	·····/˘·˘/
Was Cythna!--what a spirit strong and mild,	10	·····/˘···
Which death, or pain or peril could despise,	10	·····/˘·˘/
Yet melt in tenderness! what genius wild	10	···/˘˘·/˘·
Yet mighty, was enclosed within one simple child!	12	·/˘·˘/···/˘·
New lore was this--old age with its gray hair,	10	··········
And wrinkled legends of unworthy things,	10	·/˘/˘·˘/˘·
And icy sneers, is nought: it cannot dare	10	·/˘····/˘·
To burst the chains which life for ever flings	10	·······/˘·
On the entangled soul's aspiring wings,	10	··˘/˘·˘/˘·
So is it cold and cruel, and is made	10	·····/˘···
The careless slave of that dark power which brings	10	·/˘····/··
Evil, like blight, on man, who, still betrayed,	10	/˘······˘/
Laughs o'er the grave in which his living hopes are laid.	12	·······/˘···
Nor are the strong and the severe to keep	10	······˘/··
The empire of the world: thus Cythna taught	10	·/˘·······
Even in the visions of her eloquent sleep,	10	/··/˘··/˘·
Unconscious of the power through which she wrought	10	·/˘··/····
The woof of such intelligible thought,	10	····˘/˘˘˘·
As from the tranquil strength which cradled lay	10	···/˘··/˘·
In her smile-peopled rest, my spirit sought	10	···/˘··/˘·
Why the deceiver and the slave has sway	10	··˘/˘·····
O'er heralds so divine of truth's arising day.	12	·/˘·˘/··˘/˘·
Within that fairest form, the female mind,	10	···/˘··/··
Untainted by the poison clouds which rest	10	˘/˘··/˘···
On the dark world, a sacred home did find:	10	·····/˘···
But else, from the wide earth's maternal breast,	10	······˘/˘·
Victorious Evil, which had dispossessed	10	˘/˘˘/···˘/
All native power, had those fair children torn,	10	·/˘/···/˘·
And made them slaves to soothe his vile unrest,	10	········˘/
And minister to lust its joys forlorn,	10	·/˘˘····˘/
Till they had learned to breathe the atmosphere of scorn.	12	·······/˘···
This misery was but coldly felt, till she	10	·/˘··/˘···
Became my only friend, who had endued	10	˘/·/˘···˘/
My purpose with a wider sympathy;	10	·/˘··/˘/˘˘
Thus, Cythna mourned with me the servitude	10	·······/˘·
In which the half of humankind were mewed	10	·····/˘···
Victims of lust and hate, the slaves of slaves,	10	/˘········
She mourned that grace and power were thrown as food	10	·····/····
To the hyena lust, who, among graves,	10	··˘/˘·····
Over his loathed meal, laughing in agony, raves.	10	····/˘·/˘·
And I, still gazing on that glorious child,	10	···/˘··/˘·
Even as these thoughts flushed o'er her:--'Cythna sweet,	10	/·········
Well with the world art thou unreconciled;	10	······˘/˘·
Never will peace and human nature meet	10	/˘···/˘/˘·
Till free and equal man and woman greet	10	···/˘··/˘·
Domestic peace; and ere this power can make	10	˘/˘····/··
In human hearts its calm and holy seat,	10	·/˘····/˘·
This slavery must be broken'--as I spake,	10	·/˘··/˘···
From Cythna's eyes a light of exultation brake.	12	············
She replied earnestly:--'It shall be mine,	10	·˘//˘˘····
This task,--mine, Laon!--thou hast much to gain;	10	··········
Nor wilt thou at poor Cythna's pride repine,	10	········˘/
If she should lead a happy female train	10	·····/˘/··
To meet thee over the rejoicing plain,	10	······˘/˘·
When myriads at thy call shall throng around	10	·/˘·······
The Golden City.'--Then the child did strain	10	·/˘/˘·····
My arm upon her tremulous heart, and wound	10	·····/˘···
Her own about my neck, till some reply she found.	12	········˘/··
I smiled, and spake not.--'Wherefore dost thou smile	10	·····/˘···
At what I say? Laon, I am not weak,	10	··········
And, though my cheek might become pale the while,	10	·····˘/···
With thee, if thou desirest, will I seek	10	····˘/˘···
Through their array of banded slaves to wreak	10	··˘/·/˘···
Ruin upon the tyrants. I had thought	10	/˘···/˘···
It was more hard to turn my unpractised cheek	11	···········
To scorn and shame, and this beloved spot	10	······˘/˘·
And thee, O dearest friend, to leave and murmur not.	12	···/˘····/˘·
'Whence came I what I am? Thou, Laon, knowest	11	·········/˘
How a young child should thus undaunted be;	10	······˘/˘·
Methinks, it is a power which thou bestowest,	11	˘/···/··˘/˘
Through which I seek, by most resembling thee,	10	······˘/˘·
So to become most good and great and free;	10	··˘/······
Yet far beyond this Ocean's utmost roar,	10	·····/˘/··
In towers and huts are many like to me,	10	·/···/˘···
Who, could they see thine eyes, or feel such lore	10	··········
As I have learnt from them, like me would fear no more.	12	············
'Think'st thou that I shall speak unskilfully,	10	··········
And none will heed me? I remember now,	10	······˘/˘·
How once, a slave in tortures doomed to die,	10	·····/˘···
Was saved, because in accents sweet and low	10	·····/˘···
He sung a song his Judge loved long ago,	10	········˘/
As he was led to death.--All shall relent	10	········˘/
Who hear me--tears, as mine have flowed, shall flow,	10	··········
Hearts beat as mine now beats, with such intent	10	········˘/
As renovates the world; a will omnipotent!	11	·/˘·····˘/˘
'Yes, I will tread Pride's golden palaces,	10	·····/˘/˘˘
Through Penury's roofless huts and squalid cells	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
Will I descend, where'er in abjectness	11	··˘/˘˘/·/˘˘
Woman with some vile slave her tyrant dwells,	10	/˘·····/˘·
There with the music of thine own sweet spells	10	···/˘·····
Will disenchant the captives, and will pour	10	·····/˘···
For the despairing, from the crystal wells	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Of thy deep spirit, reason's mighty lore,	10	···/˘/˘/˘·
And power shall then abound, and hope arise once more.	12	·/··˘/··˘/··
'Can man be free if woman be a slave?	10	·····/˘···
Chain one who lives, and breathes this boundless air,	10	·······/˘·
To the corruption of a closed grave!	10	··˘/˘···˘·
Can they whose mates are beasts, condemned to bear	10	······˘/··
Scorn, heavier far than toil or anguish, dare	10	·/˘····/˘·
To trample their oppressors? in their home	10	·/˘·˘/˘···
Among their babes, thou knowest a curse would wear	11	·····/˘····
The shape of woman--hoary Crime would come	10	···/˘/˘···
Behind, and Fraud rebuild religion's tottering dome.	12	····˘/˘/˘/˘·
'I am a child:--I would not yet depart.	10	········˘/
When I go forth alone, bearing the lamp	10	····˘//˘··
Aloft which thou hast kindled in my heart,	10	˘/···/˘···
Millions of slaves from many a dungeon damp	10	/˘···/·/˘·
Shall leap in joy, as the benumbing cramp	10	··········
Of ages leaves their limbs--no ill may harm	10	·/˘·······
Thy Cythna ever--truth its radiant stamp	10	···/··/˘˘·
Has fixed, as an invulnerable charm,	10	····˘/˘˘˘·
Upon her children's brow, dark Falsehood to disarm.	12	···/˘··/··˘/
'Wait yet awhile for the appointed day--	10	··˘/··˘/˘·
Thou wilt depart, and I with tears shall stand	10	··˘/······
Watching thy dim sail skirt the ocean gray;	10	/˘·····/˘·
Amid the dwellers of this lonely land	10	˘/·/˘··/˘·

The first 400 of 441 lines; the reader marks them all.

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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