To a Friend, on the Different Success of Their Loves
Thrice happy pair! of whom we cannot knowWhich first began to love, or loves most now;Fair course of passion! where two lovers start,And run together, heart still yoked with heart;Successful youth! whom love has taught the wayTo be victorious in the first essay.Sure love's an art best practisèd at first,And where th'experienced still prosper worst!I, with a different fate, pursued in vainThe haughty Cælia, till my just disdainOf her neglect, above that passion borne,Did pride to pride oppose, and scorn to scorn.Now she relents; but all too late to moveA heart directed to a nobler love.The scales are turn'd, her kindness weighs no moreNow, than my vows and service did before.So in some well-wrought hangings you may seeHow Hector leads, and how the Grecians flee;Here, the fierce Mars his courage so inspires,That with bold hands the Argive fleet he fires;But there, from heaven the blue-eyed virgin falls,And frighted Troy retires within her walls;They that are foremost in that bloody race,Turn head anon, and give the conqu'rors chase.So like the chances are of love and war,That they alone in this distinguish'd are,In love the victors from the vanquish'd fly;They fly that wound, and they pursue that die.
'Their loves': supposed to be Alexander Hampden, involved withWaller in the plot. See 'Life''Blue-eyed virgin': Minerva.
Words in this poem
- 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.]
- haughty a.
- High; lofty; bold. [OE. hautein, F. hautain, fr. haut high, OF. also halt, fr. L. altus. See Altitude.]
- argive a.
- Of or performance to Argos, the capital of Argolis in Greece. [L. Argivus, fr. Argos, Argi.]
- anon adv.
- Straightway; at once. [OE. anoon, anon, anan, lit., in one (moment), fr. AS. on in + an one. See On and One.]
- waller n.
- One who builds walls.
- minerva n.
- The goddess of wisdom, of war, of the arts and sciences, of poetry, and of spinning and weaving; -- identified with the Grecian Pallas Athene. [L.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
To a Friend, on the Different Success of Their Loves is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham, Project Gutenberg ebook #12322; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Edmund Waller, To a Friend, on the Different Success of Their Loves, in Poetical Works (1645–1668), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12322, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/waller-denham/to-a-friend-on-the-different-success-of-their-loves.html, id L09090.
Form and metre
To a Friend, on the Different Success of Their Loves is 31 lines in 2 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 77% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 26% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in heroic couplets, 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 --AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKG-LL know · now · startA · heartA · wayB · essayB · firstC · worstC · vainD · disdainD · borneE · scornE · moveF · loveF · moreG · beforeG · seeH · fleeH · inspiresI · firesI · fallsJ · wallsJ · raceK · chaseK · warG · are · flyL · dieL
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Thrice happy pair! of whom we cannot know | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Which first began to love, or loves most now; | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Fair course of passion! where two lovers start, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And run together, heart still yoked with heart; | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Successful youth! whom love has taught the way | 10 | ˘/˘······· |
| To be victorious in the first essay. | 10 | ··˘/˘···˘/ |
| Sure love's an art best practisèd at first, | 9 | ········· |
| And where th'experienced still prosper worst! | 10 | ·····˘·/˘· |
| I, with a different fate, pursued in vain | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| The haughty Cælia, till my just disdain | 12 | ·/˘·······˘/ |
| Of her neglect, above that passion borne, | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| Did pride to pride oppose, and scorn to scorn. | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Now she relents; but all too late to move | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| A heart directed to a nobler love. | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘· |
| The scales are turn'd, her kindness weighs no more | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Now, than my vows and service did before. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| So in some well-wrought hangings you may see | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| How Hector leads, and how the Grecians flee; | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Here, the fierce Mars his courage so inspires, | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| That with bold hands the Argive fleet he fires; | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| But there, from heaven the blue-eyed virgin falls, | 10 | ···/···/˘· |
| And frighted Troy retires within her walls; | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| They that are foremost in that bloody race, | 10 | ···/···/˘· |
| Turn head anon, and give the conqu'rors chase. | 11 | ··˘/······· |
| So like the chances are of love and war, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| That they alone in this distinguish'd are, | 10 | ··˘/··˘/˘· |
| In love the victors from the vanquish'd fly; | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| They fly that wound, and they pursue that die. | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| 'Their loves': supposed to be Alexander Hampden, involved with | 15 | ··˘/···˘/˘··˘/· |
| Waller in the plot. See 'Life' | 7 | /˘····· |
| 'Blue-eyed virgin': Minerva. | 7 | ··/˘˘/˘ |
Notes from the edition 1
George Gilfillan's notes to the Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham (1857; Project Gutenberg #12322).
- Stanza 1, line 21 'Blue-eyed virgin': Minerva.
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