Laurel · Helen Maria Williams · Poems (1786)

To Mrs. Montagu

iambic pentameter · ABAB · 44 lines · from Poems (1786)

While, bending at thy honour'd shrine, the MusePours, MONTAGU, to thee her votive strain,Thy heart will not her simple notes refuse,Or chill her timid soul with cold disdain.

O might a transient spark of genius fireThe fond effusions of her fearful youth;Then should thy virtues live upon her lyre,And give to harmony the charm of truth.

Vain wish! they ask not the imperfect lay,The weak applause her trembling accents breathe;With whose pure radiance glory blends her ray,Whom fame has circled with her fairest wreathe.

Thou, who while seen with graceful step to treadGrandeur's enchanted round, can'st meekly pauseTo rend the veil obscurity had spreadWhere his lone sigh deserted Genius draws;

To lead his drooping spirit to thy fane,Where attic joy the social circle warms;Where science loves to pour her hallow'd strain,Where wit, and wisdom, blend their sep'rate charms.

And lure to cherish intellectual powers,To bid the vig'rous tides of genius roll,Unfold, in fair expansion, fancy's flowers,And wake the latent energies of soul;

Far other homage claims than flatt'ry bringsThe little triumphs of the proud to grace:For deeds like these a purer incense springs,Warm from the swelling heart its source we trace!

Yet not to foster the rich gifts of mindAlone can all thy lib'ral cares employ;Not to the few those gifts adorn, confin'd,They spread an ampler sphere of genuine joy.

While pleasure's lucid star illumes thy bower,Thy pity views the distant storm that bendsWhere want unshelter'd wastes the ling'ring hour;--And meets the blessing that to heav'n ascends!

For this, while fame thro' each successive ageOn her exulting lip thy name shall breathe;While woman, pointing to thy finish'd page,Claims from imperious man the critic wreathe;

Truth on her spotless record shall enrollEach moral beauty to her spirit dear;Paint in bright characters each grace of soul--While admiration pours a gen'rous tear.

Words in this poem

votive a.: Given by vow, or in fulfillment of a vow; consecrated by a vow; devoted; as, votive offerings; a votive tablet. [L. votivus, fr. votum a vow: cf. F. votif. See Vow.]
circled a.: Having the form of a circle; round.
enchanted a.: Under the power of enchantment; possessed or exercised by enchanters; as, an enchanted castle.
meekly adv.: In a meek manner.
lone n.: A lane. See Loanin.
fane n.: A temple; a place consecrated to religion; a church. [L. fanum a place dedicated to some deity, a sanctuary, fr. fari to speak. See Fame.]
exulting a.: Rejoicing triumphantly or exceedingly; exultant.
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,]
imperious a.: Commanding; ascendant; imperial; lordly; majestic. [L. imperiosus: cf. F. impérieux. See Imperial.]
admiration n.: Wonder; astonishment. [F., fr. L. admiratio. See Admire.]

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

About this text

To Mrs. Montagu is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems (1786), Volume I., Project Gutenberg ebook #11054; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: Helen Maria Williams, To Mrs. Montagu, in Poems (1786) (1786), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #11054, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/williams-helen-poems/to-mrs-montagu.html, id L10032.

Form and metre

To Mrs. Montagu is 44 lines in 11 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 10 of its 11 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 23% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.

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 ABAB muse^A · strain^B · refuse^A · disdain^B
2 ABAB fire^A · youth^B · lyre^A · truth^B
3 ABAB lay^A · breathe^B · ray^A · wreathe^B
4 ABAB tread^A · pause^B · spread^A · draws^B
5 A-A- fane^A · warms · strain^A · charms
6 ABAB powers^A · roll^B · flowers^A · soul^B
7 ABAB brings^A · grace^B · springs^A · trace^B
8 ABAB mind^A · employ^B · confin'd^A · joy^B
9 ABAB bower^A · bends^B · hour^A · ascends^B
10 ABAB age^A · breathe^B · page^A · wreathe^B
11 ABAB enroll^A · dear^B · soul^A · tear^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
While, bending at thy honour'd shrine, the Muse	10	·/˘·······
Pours, MONTAGU, to thee her votive strain,	10	·/˘····/˘·
Thy heart will not her simple notes refuse,	10	·····/˘·˘/
Or chill her timid soul with cold disdain.	10	···/˘···˘/
O might a transient spark of genius fire	11	···/˘··/˘/˘
The fond effusions of her fearful youth;	10	·······/˘·
Then should thy virtues live upon her lyre,	10	···/˘·····
And give to harmony the charm of truth.	10	···/˘˘····
Vain wish! they ask not the imperfect lay,	10	······˘/˘·
The weak applause her trembling accents breathe;	10	··˘/·/˘/˘·
With whose pure radiance glory blends her ray,	10	···/˘/˘···
Whom fame has circled with her fairest wreathe.	10	···/˘··/˘·
Thou, who while seen with graceful step to tread	10	·····/˘···
Grandeur's enchanted round, can'st meekly pause	10	˘/˘/˘··/˘·
To rend the veil obscurity had spread	10	····˘/˘˘··
Where his lone sigh deserted Genius draws;	10	····˘/˘/˘·
To lead his drooping spirit to thy fane,	10	···/˘/˘···
Where attic joy the social circle warms;	10	·/˘··/˘/˘·
Where science loves to pour her hallow'd strain,	10	·/˘····/˘·
Where wit, and wisdom, blend their sep'rate charms.	10	···/˘·····
And lure to cherish intellectual powers,	10	···/˘·˘/˘/
To bid the vig'rous tides of genius roll,	10	·······/˘·
Unfold, in fair expansion, fancy's flowers,	11	˘/··˘/˘/˘/˘
And wake the latent energies of soul;	10	···/˘/˘˘··
Far other homage claims than flatt'ry brings	10	·/˘/˘·····
The little triumphs of the proud to grace:	10	·/˘/˘·····
For deeds like these a purer incense springs,	10	·····/˘/··
Warm from the swelling heart its source we trace!	10	···/˘·····
Yet not to foster the rich gifts of mind	10	···/˘·····
Alone can all thy lib'ral cares employ;	10	˘/···/˘·˘/
Not to the few those gifts adorn, confin'd,	10	······˘/˘/
They spread an ampler sphere of genuine joy.	10	·······/˘·
While pleasure's lucid star illumes thy bower,	11	·/˘/˘····/˘
Thy pity views the distant storm that bends	10	·/˘··/˘···
Where want unshelter'd wastes the ling'ring hour;--	11	·········/˘
And meets the blessing that to heav'n ascends!	10	···/˘···˘/
For this, while fame thro' each successive age	10	······˘/˘·
On her exulting lip thy name shall breathe;	10	··˘/˘·····
While woman, pointing to thy finish'd page,	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
Claims from imperious man the critic wreathe;	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
Truth on her spotless record shall enroll	10	···/˘/˘·˘/
Each moral beauty to her spirit dear;	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
Paint in bright characters each grace of soul--	10	···/˘˘····
While admiration pours a gen'rous tear.	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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