For a Lady Who Desired Me to Show Affection
Now you have bestowed me consent to love,
What shall you respond?
Am I to your joy, or passion move,
As I start to woo;
Will you distress, or disdain, or adore me too?
Each petty charm can reject, and I
Despite your dislike
Lacking your permission can see, and succumb;
Bestow a nobler Destiny!
It's simple to ruin, you could form.
Therefore grant me leave to cherish, & cherish me too
Lacking intent
To elevate, as Loves cursed insurgents do
As puling Poets moan,
Fame to their beauty, from their weeping gaze.
Sadness is a pond and mirrors not distinct
Thy beauty’s lights;
Delights are clear streames, your vision look
Morose in sadder songs,
Through happy lines they gleam brilliant with prayse.
Which shall not mention to describe you fair
Wounds, flames, and shafts,
Tempests in your brow, traps in your hayr,
Corrupting all your features,
Or else to betray, or torture captive affections.
I’ll cause your vision like sunrise orbs look,
Like gentle, and fayr;
Thy countenance as Crystall smooth, and clear,
While your dishevelled hair
Shall flow like a calm Zone of the Air.
Rich Nature’s treasury (which is the Poet’s Treasure)
I’l spend, to embellish
Your graces, if your Mine of Pleasure
With equal appreciation
Thou but unlock, so we each other favor.
Examining the Work's Ideas
The piece delves the dynamics of affection and admiration, in which the narrator speaks to a woman who requests his devotion. Conversely, he proposes a reciprocal exchange of literary admiration for intimate delights. This wording is elegant, mixing refined traditions with frank statements of desire.
In the stanzas, the poet rejects common motifs of one-sided passion, like sorrow and tears, arguing they obscure true grace. The speaker prefers joy and praise to emphasize the woman's features, assuring to portray her eyes as bright orbs and her hair as flowing breeze. This technique underscores a realistic yet artful outlook on connections.
Significant Elements of the Work
- Mutual Arrangement: The poem centers on a offer of tribute in trade for enjoyment, highlighting equality between the parties.
- Dismissal of Conventional Ideas: The narrator condemns common artistic tools like grief and metaphors of pain, preferring optimistic descriptions.
- Creative Skill: The application of mixed verse patterns and flow displays the writer's proficiency in verse, forming a graceful and engaging experience.
Abundant The natural world's treasury (which is the Poet’s Wealth)
I’l use, to dress
One's charms, if your Source of Pleasure
In equall appreciation
You but release, so we one another favor.
This verse summarizes the central bargain, as the writer pledges to employ his creative abilities to celebrate the maiden, as compensation for her receptiveness. The phraseology blends devout undertones with physical desires, adding profundity to the work's meaning.