To Lord Harley, on His Marriage October 31, 1713
Among the numbers who employTheir tongues and pens to give you joy,Dear Harley! generous youth, admitWhat friendship dictates more than wit.Forgive me, when I fondly thought(By frequent observations taught)A spirit so inform'd as yoursCould never prosper in amours.The God of Wit, and Light, and Arts,With all acquired and natural parts,Whose harp could savage beasts enchant,Was an unfortunate gallant.Had Bacchus after Daphne reel'd,The nymph had soon been brought to yield;Or, had embroider'd Mars pursued,The nymph would ne'er have been a prude.Ten thousand footsteps, full in view,Mark out the way where Daphne flew;For such is all the sex's flight,They fly from learning, wit, and light;They fly, and none can overtakeBut some gay coxcomb, or a rake.How then, dear Harley, could I guessThat you should meet, in love, success?For, if those ancient tales be true,Phoebus was beautiful as you;Yet Daphne never slack'd her pace,For wit and learning spoil'd his face.And since the same resemblance heldIn gifts wherein you both excell'd,I fancied every nymph would runFrom you, as from Latona's son.Then where, said I, shall Harley findA virgin of superior mind,With wit and virtue to discover,And pay the merit of her lover?This character shall Ca'endish claim,Born to retrieve her sex's fame.The chief among the glittering crowd,Of titles, birth, and fortune proud,(As fools are insolent and vain)Madly aspired to wear her chain;But Pallas, guardian of the maid,Descending to her charge's aid,Held out Medusa's snaky locks,Which stupified them all to stocks.The nymph with indignation view'dThe dull, the noisy, and the lewd;For Pallas, with celestial light,Had purified her mortal sight;Show'd her the virtues all combined,Fresh blooming, in young Harley's mind.Terrestrial nymphs, by formal arts,Display their various nets for hearts:Their looks are all by method set,When to be prude, and when coquette;Yet, wanting skill and power to chuse,Their only pride is to refuse.But, when a goddess would bestowHer love on some bright youth below,Round all the earth she casts her eyes;And then, descending from the skies,Makes choice of him she fancies best,And bids the ravish'd youth be bless'd.Thus the bright empress of the mornChose for her spouse a mortal born:The goddess made advances first;Else what aspiring hero durst?Though, like a virgin of fifteen,She blushes when by mortals seen;Still blushes, and with speed retires,When Sol pursues her with his fires.Diana thus, Heaven's chastest queenStruck with Endymion's graceful mienDown from her silver chariot came,And to the shepherd own'd her flame.Thus Ca'endish, as Aurora bright,And chaster than the Queen of NightDescended from her sphere to findA mortal of superior kind.
Lady Henrietta Cavendish Holles, only daughter of John, Duke ofNewcastle. He took no part in public affairs, but delighted in theSociety of the poets and men of letters of his day, especially Pope and
Words in this poem 23
- generous a.
- Of honorable birth or origin; highborn. [F. généreux, fr. L. generous of noble birth, noble, excellent, magnanimous, fr. genus birth, race: cf. It. generoso. See 2d Gender.]
- fondly adv.
- Foolishly. Verstegan (1673).
- prosper v. t.
- To favor; to render successful. [F. prospérer v. i., or L. prosperare, v. i., or L. prosperare, v. t., fr. prosper or prosperus. See Prosperous.]
- enchant v. t.
- To charm by sorcery; to act on by enchantment; to get control of by magical words and rites. [F. enchanter, L. incantare to chant or utter a magic formula over or against one, to bewitch; in in, against + cantare to sing. See Chant, and cf. Incantation.]
- daphne n.
- A genus of diminutive Shrubs, mostly evergreen, and with fragrant blossoms. [L., a laurel tree, from Gr. .]
- prude n.
- A woman of affected modesty, reserve, or coyness; one who is overscrupulous or sensitive; one who affects extraordinary prudence in conduct and speech. [F., prudish, originally, discreet, modest; shortened from OF. prudefeme, preudefeme, a discreet or excellent woman; OF. preu, prou, excellent, brave + de of + f]
- phoebus n.
- Apollo; the sun god.
- 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,]
- discover v. i.
- To discover or show one's self.
- retrieve n.
- A seeking again; a discovery. B. Jonson.
- madly adv.
- In a mad manner; without reason or understanding; wildly. [From Mad, a.]
- pallas n.
- Pallas Athene, the Grecian goddess of wisdom, called also Athene, and identified, at a later period, with the Roman Minerva.
- snaky a.
- Of or pertaining to a snake or snakes; resembling a snake; serpentine; winding.
- lewd a.
- Not clerical; laic; laical; hence, unlearned; simple. [OE.lewed, lewd, lay, ignorant, vile, AS. l laical, belonging to the laity.]
- coquette n.
- A vain, trifling woman, who endeavors to attract admiration from a desire to grafity vanity; a flirt; -- formerly sometimes applied also to men. [F., fr. coquet, coquette, coquettish, orig., cocklike, strutting like a cock, fr. coq a cock. Cf. Cock, Cocket, Cocky, Cockade.]
- 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.]
- spouse v. t.
- To wed; to espouse. [See Espouse, and Spouse, n.]
- aspiring a.
- That aspires; as, an Aspiring mind.
- diana n.
- The daughter of Jupiter and Latona; a virgin goddess who presided over hunting, chastity, and marriage; -- identified with the Greek goddess Artemis. [L. Diana.]
- aurora n.
- The rising light of the morning; the dawn of day; the redness of the sky just before the sun rises. [L. aurora, for ausosa, akin to Gr. ushas, and E. east.]
- cavendish n.
- Leaf tobacco softened, sweetened, and pressed into plugs or cakes. Cut cavendish, the plugs cut into long shreds for smoking.
- duke n.
- A leader; a chief; a prince. [F. duc, fr. L. dux, ducis, leader, commander, fr. ducere to lead; akin to AS. teón to draw; cf. AS. heretoga (here army) an army leader, general, G. herzog duke]
- delighted a.
- Endowed with delight.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
To Lord Harley, on His Marriage October 31, 1713 is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Volume 1, Project Gutenberg ebook #14353; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Jonathan Swift, To Lord Harley, on His Marriage October 31, 1713, in On Poetry: A Rhapsody, and Other Poems (1727), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #14353, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/swift-poems-vol1/to-lord-harley-on-his-marriage-october-31-1713.html, id L24500.
Form and metre
To Lord Harley, on His Marriage October 31, 1713 is 83 lines in 2 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 92% of the lines: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%).
See other poems in octosyllabic couplets, other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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 AABBCC--DDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQRRSSTTUUVVWWXXYYZZaabbccddeeffgghh--hhiijjkk employA · joyA · admitB · witB · thoughtC · taughtC · yours · amours · artsD · partsD · enchantE · gallantE · reel'dF · yieldF · pursuedG · prudeG · viewH · flewH · flightI · lightI · overtakeJ · rakeJ · guessK · successK · trueL · youL · paceM · faceM · heldN · excell'dN · runO · sonO · findP · mindP · discoverQ · loverQ · claimR · fameR · crowdS · proudS · vainT · chainT · maidU · aidU · locksV · stocksV · view'dW · lewdW · lightX · sightX · combinedY · mindY · artsZ · heartsZ · seta · coquettea · chuseb · refuseb · bestowc · belowc · eyesd · skiesd · beste · bless'de · mornf · bornf · firstg · durstg · fifteenh · seenh · retires · fires · queenh · mienh · camei · flamei · brightj · nightj · findk · kindk
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Among the numbers who employ | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Their tongues and pens to give you joy, | 8 | ········ |
| Dear Harley! generous youth, admit | 8 | ·/˘/˘·˘/ |
| What friendship dictates more than wit. | 8 | ·/˘/···· |
| Forgive me, when I fondly thought | 8 | ˘/···/˘· |
| (By frequent observations taught) | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| A spirit so inform'd as yours | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| Could never prosper in amours. | 8 | ·/˘/˘·/˘ |
| The God of Wit, and Light, and Arts, | 8 | ········ |
| With all acquired and natural parts, | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| Whose harp could savage beasts enchant, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Was an unfortunate gallant. | 8 | ··˘/˘˘/˘ |
| Had Bacchus after Daphne reel'd, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| The nymph had soon been brought to yield; | 8 | ········ |
| Or, had embroider'd Mars pursued, | 8 | ··˘/˘·˘/ |
| The nymph would ne'er have been a prude. | 8 | ········ |
| Ten thousand footsteps, full in view, | 8 | ·/˘/···· |
| Mark out the way where Daphne flew; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| For such is all the sex's flight, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| They fly from learning, wit, and light; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| They fly, and none can overtake | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| But some gay coxcomb, or a rake. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| How then, dear Harley, could I guess | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| That you should meet, in love, success? | 8 | ······˘/ |
| For, if those ancient tales be true, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Phoebus was beautiful as you; | 8 | /˘·/˘˘·· |
| Yet Daphne never slack'd her pace, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| For wit and learning spoil'd his face. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And since the same resemblance held | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| In gifts wherein you both excell'd, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| I fancied every nymph would run | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| From you, as from Latona's son. | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Then where, said I, shall Harley find | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| A virgin of superior mind, | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| With wit and virtue to discover, | 9 | ···/˘·˘/˘ |
| And pay the merit of her lover? | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| This character shall Ca'endish claim, | 8 | ·/˘˘···· |
| Born to retrieve her sex's fame. | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| The chief among the glittering crowd, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Of titles, birth, and fortune proud, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| (As fools are insolent and vain) | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| Madly aspired to wear her chain; | 8 | /˘˘/···· |
| But Pallas, guardian of the maid, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Descending to her charge's aid, | 8 | ˘/˘··/˘· |
| Held out Medusa's snaky locks, | 8 | ··˘/˘/˘· |
| Which stupified them all to stocks. | 7 | ······· |
| The nymph with indignation view'd | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| The dull, the noisy, and the lewd; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| For Pallas, with celestial light, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Had purified her mortal sight; | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Show'd her the virtues all combined, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Fresh blooming, in young Harley's mind. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Terrestrial nymphs, by formal arts, | 8 | ˘/˘··/˘· |
| Display their various nets for hearts: | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| Their looks are all by method set, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| When to be prude, and when coquette; | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Yet, wanting skill and power to chuse, | 8 | ·/˘··/·· |
| Their only pride is to refuse. | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| But, when a goddess would bestow | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Her love on some bright youth below, | 8 | ········ |
| Round all the earth she casts her eyes; | 8 | ········ |
| And then, descending from the skies, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Makes choice of him she fancies best, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| And bids the ravish'd youth be bless'd. | 8 | ········ |
| Thus the bright empress of the morn | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Chose for her spouse a mortal born: | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The goddess made advances first; | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| Else what aspiring hero durst? | 8 | ··˘/˘/˘· |
| Though, like a virgin of fifteen, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| She blushes when by mortals seen; | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Still blushes, and with speed retires, | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| When Sol pursues her with his fires. | 9 | ··˘/···/˘ |
| Diana thus, Heaven's chastest queen | 9 | ˘/˘·/˘/˘· |
| Struck with Endymion's graceful mien | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Down from her silver chariot came, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| And to the shepherd own'd her flame. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Thus Ca'endish, as Aurora bright, | 8 | ········ |
| And chaster than the Queen of Night | 8 | ········ |
| Descended from her sphere to find | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| A mortal of superior kind. | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| Lady Henrietta Cavendish Holles, only daughter of John, Duke of | 17 | /˘·˘/˘/˘·/˘/˘···· |
| Newcastle. He took no part in public affairs, but delighted in the | 18 | /·˘·····/˘˘/·˘/˘·· |
| Society of the poets and men of letters of his day, especially Pope and | 20 | ˘/˘··/˘···/˘···˘/˘·· |
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