And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, And on the pedestal these words appear: 6 My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair! ' SHELLEY. Scorn not the sonnet; critic, you have frowned, It cheered mild Spenser, called from Faery-Land The thing became a trumpet; whence he blew alas, too few! WORDSWORTH. Though the bold wings of Poesy affect The clouds, and wheel around the mountain tops Well pleased to skim the plain with wild flowers decked, Or muse in solemn grove whose shades protect The lingering dew there steals along, or stops Watching the least small bird that round her hops, Her functions are they therefore less divine, Her thoughts less deep, or void of grave intent Her simplest fancies? Should that fear be thine, Aspiring votary, ere thy hand present One offering, kneel before her modest shrine, WORDSWORTH. IN THE CHURCHYARD AT TARRYTOWN Here lies the gentle humourist (1), who died Here in the autumn of his days he came, Living, to wing with mirth the weary hours, Of summers full of sunshine and of showers, (1) Washington Irving. LONGFELLOW. XII BLANK VERSE The earl of Surrey, who, with his friend Wyatt, introduced the sonnet into England, is said to have been the first English poet that wrote verse without rhyme, commonly called blank verse. This assertion is not, however, in accordance with fact: much blank verse had been written in English before Surrey. Very early in the thirteenth century, the 'Ormulum,' a paraphrase of the Gospel histories, by one Orm, or Ormin, was written in iambic blank verses of seven feet. The following passage is taken from that work. Thurrh (1) thatt the Laferrd (2) seggde (3) thuss till (4) Nicodem withth worde: Swa (5) lufede (6) the Laferrd Godd the werelld (7) thatt he sennde His aghenn (8) sune (9) Allmahtig (10) Godd to wurrthen (11) mann onn erthe To lesenn (12) mannkinn thurrh his death ut (13) off the defless (14) walde (15), Thatt whase (16) trowwenn (17) shall onn himm well mughe (18) wurrthenn borrghenn (19); (8) own. - (9) son. — (10) almighty.—(11) become. whosoever. (17) believe. (14) devil's. (15) power. Thær thurrh he dide (1) Nicodem to sen (2) and unnderrstanndenn hatt he wass Godd himm sellf, off Godd, and Godess sune annkennedd (3), And wurrthean mann o moder hallf (4) thurrh sothfasst (5) herrsummnesse (6), Thurrh thatt his Faderr haffde (7) himm sennd and gifenn himm to manne, To tholenn (8) death o rode tre (9) forr all mannkinne nede (10). Besides this, alliterative verse without rhyme was used, after the manner of the Anglo-Saxon poets. The Anglo-Saxon poets appear to have composed their verses two by two, in distichs. The verses were short, without rhyme; the harmony depended on accent and alliteration. There were generally in each distich three or two accented syllables beginning with the same consonant or any vowels two or one of these alliterative syllables occurred in the first line of the distich, and one in the second line, almost always its first accented syllable, or sometimes two. The total number of accented syllables was usually two in each line the number of unaccented syllables was not fixed. The following passage is an example of Anglo-Saxon alliterative verse. Crist was acennyd Ece, ælmihtig! On thy eahteothan dæg; Heofon rices weard. Christ was born He was called the saviour, (3) acknowledged. — (4) o moder hallf, on (5) faithful. (6) obedience. - (9) o rode tre, on the cross. nede, for all mankind's need. (7) had. - (10) forr all mannkinne In the first and in the fourth distich there are three, in the second two accented syllables beginning with the same consonant. In the third there are three accented syllables beginning with different vowels: the alliteration. consists in the absence of consonants. In some recent editions of Anglo-Saxon poems the connected lines have been printed as one verse, thus: Crist was accennyd cyninga waldor Here is another specimen of Anglo-Saxon alliterative verse, arranged in the same manner. Us is riht micel that we rodera weard, Frea ælmihtig. Næs him fruma æfre, Or geworden, ne nu ende cymth Ecean drihtnes, ac he bith a rice Ofer heofonstolas. Heagum thrymmum, Sothfæst and swithfeorm sweglbosmas heold Tha wæron gesette wide and side, Thurh geweald godes, wuldres bearnum, Gasta weardum. CÆDMON. For us it is much right that we the guardian of the skies, the glory-king of hosts, with our words praise, in our hearts love. He is of power the essence, the head of all high creatures, the Lord Almighty. To him has beginning never origin been, nor now end cometh of the eternal Lord, but he is ever powerful over the heavenly thrones. With high majesty, |