The Picture
Thou that both feel'st and dost admireThe flames shot from a painted fire,Know Celia's image thou dost see:Not to herself more like is she.He that should both together viewWould judge both pictures, or both true.But thus they differ: the best partOf Nature this is; that of Art.
Whence took the diamond worth? the borrow'd raysThat crystal wears, whence had they first their praise?Why should rude feet contemn the snow's chaste white,Which from the sun receives a sparkling light,Brighter than diamonds far, and by its birthDecks the green garment of the richer earth?Rivers than crystal clearer, when to iceCongeal'd, why do weak judgements so despise?Which, melting, show that to impartial sightWeeping than smiling crystal is more bright.But Fancy those first priz'd, and these did scorn,Taking their praise the other to adorn.Thus blind is human sight: opinion gaveTo their esteem a birth, to theirs a grave;Nor can our judgements with these clouds dispense,Since reason sees but with the eyes of sense.
What busy cares, too timely born,Young swain! disturb thy sleep?Thy early sighs awake the morn,Thy tears teach her to weep.
My griefs are such as but to hearWould poison all thy joys;The pity which thou seem'st to bearMy health, thine own destroys.
Choose one whose love may be assur'dBy thine: who ever knewInveterate diseases cur'dBut by receiving new?
Thy prayer is heard: learn now t'esteemThe kindness she hath shown,Who, thy lost freedom to redeem,Hath forfeited her own.
Words in this poem
- admire v. t.
- To regard with wonder or astonishment; to view with surprise; to marvel at. [F. admirer, fr. L. admirari; ad + mirari to wonder, for smirari, akin to Gr. smi, and E. smile.]
- contemn v. t.
- To view or treat with contempt, as mean and despicable; to reject with disdain; to despise; to scorn. [L. contemnere, -temptum; con- + temnere to slight, despise: cf. OF. contemner.]
- clearer n.
- One who, or that which, clears.
- 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]
- dispense v. i.
- To compensate; to make up; to make amends.
- morn n.
- The first part of the day; the morning; -- used chiefly in poetry. [OE. morwen, morgen, AS. morgen; akin to D. morgen, OS. morgan, G. morgen, Icel. morginn, morgunn, Sw. morgon, Dan. morgen, Goth. maúrgins. Cf. Morrow, Morning.]
- inveterate a.
- Old; long-established. [L. inveteratus, p. p. of inveterare to render old; pref. in- in + vetus, veteris, old. See Veteran.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Picture is in the public domain. This text is taken from Thomas Stanley: His Original Lyrics, Complete, In Their Collated Readings of 1647, 1651, 1657. With an Introduction, Textual Notes, a List of Editions, an Appendix of Translations, and a Portrait., Project Gutenberg ebook #32986; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Thomas Stanley, The Picture, in Original Lyrics (1651), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #32986, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/stanley-lyrics/the-picture.html, id L08933.
Form and metre
The Picture is 40 lines in 6 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 4 of its 6 stanzas. The metre is common measure, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.4 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 35% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in common measure.
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 AABBCCDD admireA · fireA · seeB · sheB · viewC · trueC · partD · artD
- 2 AABBCC--BBDDEEFF raysA · praiseA · whiteB · lightB · birthC · earthC · ice · despise · sightB · brightB · scornD · adornD · gaveE · graveE · dispenseF · senseF
- 3 ABAB bornA · sleepB · mornA · weepB
- 4 ABAB hearA · joysB · bearA · destroysB
- 5 ABAB assur'dA · knewB · cur'dA · newB
- 6 ABAB t'esteemA · shownB · redeemA · ownB
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 common measure. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Thou that both feel'st and dost admire | 8 | ······˘/ |
| The flames shot from a painted fire, | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| Know Celia's image thou dost see: | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Not to herself more like is she. | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| He that should both together view | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Would judge both pictures, or both true. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| But thus they differ: the best part | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Of Nature this is; that of Art. | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Whence took the diamond worth? the borrow'd rays | 10 | ···/˘··/·· |
| That crystal wears, whence had they first their praise? | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Why should rude feet contemn the snow's chaste white, | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Which from the sun receives a sparkling light, | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| Brighter than diamonds far, and by its birth | 9 | /·/˘····· |
| Decks the green garment of the richer earth? | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Rivers than crystal clearer, when to ice | 10 | /˘·/˘/˘··· |
| Congeal'd, why do weak judgements so despise? | 10 | ˘/···/˘·˘/ |
| Which, melting, show that to impartial sight | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| Weeping than smiling crystal is more bright. | 10 | /˘·/˘/˘··· |
| But Fancy those first priz'd, and these did scorn, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Taking their praise the other to adorn. | 10 | /˘···/˘·˘/ |
| Thus blind is human sight: opinion gave | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| To their esteem a birth, to theirs a grave; | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Nor can our judgements with these clouds dispense, | 10 | ··//˘···˘/ |
| Since reason sees but with the eyes of sense. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| What busy cares, too timely born, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Young swain! disturb thy sleep? | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| Thy early sighs awake the morn, | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| Thy tears teach her to weep. | 6 | ······ |
| My griefs are such as but to hear | 8 | ········ |
| Would poison all thy joys; | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| The pity which thou seem'st to bear | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| My health, thine own destroys. | 6 | ····˘/ |
| Choose one whose love may be assur'd | 8 | ······˘/ |
| By thine: who ever knew | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Inveterate diseases cur'd | 8 | ˘/˘˘˘/˘· |
| But by receiving new? | 6 | ··˘/˘· |
| Thy prayer is heard: learn now t'esteem | 8 | ········ |
| The kindness she hath shown, | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Who, thy lost freedom to redeem, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Hath forfeited her own. | 6 | ·/˘˘·· |
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.