Tristram Of Lyonesse - Vii - The Wife's Vigil Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: AABCDDEEEFGHHIIIJJKK KKLLMMNNKKKKKKOOPPKK QQNNKKRRKK KKSSTTUUKKKKVVWWKKKK XXKKKKYYOOZZJJKKA2A2 KKB2B2C2C2JJKKD2D2JJ E2E2BCKK F2F2SSKKYYKKSSG2G2H2 H2E2E2I2I2TTJ2J2K2K2 RL2E2E2ZZEEKKE2E2E2K KKTTZZOOKKKKKKM2M2KK E2E2N2N2TTE2E2O2O2N2 N2TTKKTTN2N2KKTTP2P2 KKTTN2N2N2KKKKKQ2Q2K KKKJJTTN2N2R2R2JJN2N 2KK N2N2KKJJBut all that year in Brittany forlorn | A |
More sick at heart with wrath than fear of scorn | A |
And less in love with love than grief and less | B |
With grief than pride of spirit and bitterness | C |
Till all the sweet life of her blood was changed | D |
And all her soul from all her past estranged | D |
And all her will with all itself at strife | E |
And all her mind at war with all her life | E |
Dwelt the white handed Iseult maid and wife | E |
A mourner that for mourning robes had on | F |
Anger and doubt and hate of things foregone | G |
For that sweet spirit of old which made her sweet | H |
Was parched with blasts of thought as flowers with heat | H |
And withered as with wind of evil will | I |
Though slower than frosts or fires consume or kill | I |
That bleak black wind vexed all her spirit still | I |
As ripples reddening in the roughening breath | J |
Of the eager east when dawn does night to death | J |
So rose and stirred and kindled in her thought | K |
Fierce barren fluctuant fires that lit not aught | K |
But scorched her soul with yearning keen as hate | K |
And dreams that left her wrath disconsolate | K |
When change came first on that first heaven where all | L |
Life's hours were flowers that dawn's light hand let fall | L |
The sun that smote her dewy cloud of days | M |
Wrought from its showery folds his rainbow's rays | M |
For love the red for hope the gentle green | N |
But yellow jealousy glared pale between | N |
Ere yet the sky grew heavier and her head | K |
Bent flowerwise chill with change and fancies fled | K |
She saw but love arch all her heaven across with red | K |
A burning bloom that seemed to breathe and beat | K |
And waver only as flame with rapturous heat | K |
Wavers and all the world therewith smelt sweet | K |
As incense kindling from the rose red flame | O |
And when that full flush waned and love became | O |
Scarce fainter though his fading horoscope | P |
From certitude of sight receded hope | P |
Held yet her April coloured light aloft | K |
As though to lure back love a lamp sublime and soft | K |
But soon that light paled as a leaf grows pale | Q |
And fluttered leaf like in the gathering gale | Q |
And melted even as dew flakes whose brief sheen | N |
The sun that gave despoils of glittering green | N |
Till harder shone 'twixt hope and love grown cold | K |
A sallow light like withering autumn's gold | K |
The pale strong flame of jealous thought that glows | R |
More deep than hope's green bloom or love's enkindled rose | R |
As though the sunflower's faint fierce disk absorbed | K |
The spirit and heart of starrier flowers disorbed | K |
- | |
That same full hour of twilight's doors unbarred | K |
To let bright night behold in Joyous Gard | K |
The glad grave eyes of lovers far away | S |
Watch with sweet thoughts of death the death of day | S |
Saw lonelier by the narrower opening sea | T |
Sit fixed at watch Iseult of Brittany | T |
As darkness from deep valleys void and bleak | U |
Climbs till it clothe with night the sunniest peak | U |
Where only of all a mystic mountain land | K |
Day seems to cling yet with a trembling hand | K |
And yielding heart reluctant to recede | K |
So till her soul was clothed with night indeed | K |
Rose the slow cloud of envious will within | V |
And hardening hate that held itself no sin | V |
Veiled heads of vision eyes of evil gleam | W |
Dim thought on thought and darkling dream on dream | W |
Far off she saw in spirit and seeing abhorred | K |
The likeness wrought on darkness of her lord | K |
Shine and the imperial semblance at his side | K |
Whose shadow from her seat cast down the bride | K |
Whose power and ghostly presence thrust her forth | X |
Beside that unknown other sea far north | X |
She saw them clearer than in present sight | K |
Rose on her eyes the starry shadow of night | K |
And on her heart that heaved with gathering fate | K |
Rose red with storm the starless shadow of hate | K |
And eyes and heart made one saw surge and swell | Y |
The fires of sunset like the fires of hell | Y |
As though God's wrath would burn up sin with shame | O |
The incensed red gold of deepening heaven grew flame | O |
The sweet green spaces of the soft low sky | Z |
Faded as fields that withering wind leaves dry | Z |
The sea's was like a doomsman's blasting breath | J |
From lips afoam with ravenous lust of death | J |
A night like desolation sombre starred | K |
Above the great walled girth of Joyous Gard | K |
Spread forth its wide sad strength of shadow and gloom | A2 |
Wherein those twain were compassed round with doom | A2 |
Hell from beneath called on them and she heard | K |
Reverberate judgment in the wild wind's word | K |
Cry till the sole sound of their names that rang | B2 |
Clove all the sea mist with a clarion's clang | B2 |
And clouds to clouds and flames to clustering flames | C2 |
Beat back the dark noise of the direful names | C2 |
Fear and strong exultation caught her breath | J |
And triumph like the bitterness of death | J |
And rapture like the rage of hate allayed | K |
With ruin and ravin that its might hath made | K |
And her heart swelled and strained itself to hear | D2 |
What may be heard of no man's hungering ear | D2 |
And as a soil that cleaves in twain for drouth | J |
Thirsted for judgment given of God's own mouth | J |
Against them till the strength of dark desire | E2 |
Was in her as a flame of hell's own fire | E2 |
Nor seemed the wrath which held her spirit in stress | B |
Aught else or worse than passionate holiness | C |
Nor the ardent hate which called on judgment's rod | K |
More hateful than the righteousness of God | K |
- | |
How long till thou do justice and my wrong | F2 |
Stand expiate O long suffering judge how long | F2 |
Shalt thou not put him in mine hand one day | S |
Whom I so loved to spare not but to slay | S |
Shalt thou not cast her down for me to tread | K |
Me on the pale pride of her humbled head | K |
Do I not well being angry doth not hell | Y |
Require them yea thou knowest that I do well | Y |
Is not thy seal there set of bloodred light | K |
For witness on the brows of day and night | K |
Who shall unseal it what shall melt away | S |
Thy signet from the doors of night and day | S |
No man nor strength of any spirit above | G2 |
Nor prayer nor ardours of adulterous love | G2 |
Thou art God the strong lord over body and soul | H2 |
Hast thou not in the terrors of thy scroll | H2 |
All names of all men written as with fire | E2 |
Thine only breath bids time and space respire | E2 |
And are not all things evil in them done | I2 |
More clear in thine eyes than in ours the sun | I2 |
Hast thou not sight stretched wide enough to see | T |
These that offend it these at once and me | T |
Is thine arm shortened or thine hand struck down | J2 |
As palsied have thy brows not strength to frown | J2 |
Are thine eyes blind with film of withering age | K2 |
Burns not thine heart with righteousness of rage | K2 |
Yet and the royal rancour toward thy foes | R |
Retributive of ruin Time should close | L2 |
Thou said'st and earth fade as a leaf grows grey | E2 |
Ere one word said of thine should pass away | E2 |
Was this then not thy word thou God most high | Z |
That sin shall surely bring forth death and die | Z |
Seeing how these twain live and have joy of life | E |
His harlot and the man that made me wife | E |
For is it I perchance I that have sinned | K |
Me peradventure should thy wasting wind | K |
Smite and thy sun blast and thy storms devour | E2 |
Me with keen fangs of lightning should thy power | E2 |
Put forth on me the weight of its awakening hour | E2 |
Shall I that bear this burden bear that weight | K |
Of judgment is my sin against thee great | K |
If all my heart against them burn with all its hate | K |
Thine and not mine should hate be nay but me | T |
They have spoiled and scoffed at who can touch not thee | T |
Me me the fullness of their joy drains dry | Z |
Their fruitfulness makes barren thou not I | Z |
Lord is it whom their wrongdoing clothes with shame | O |
That all who speak shoot tongues out at thy name | O |
As all who hear mock mine Make me thy sword | K |
At least if even thou too be wronged O Lord | K |
At all of these that wrong me make mine hand | K |
As lightning or my tongue a fiery brand | K |
To burn or smite them with thy wrath behold | K |
I have nought on earth save thee for hope or hold | K |
Fail me not thou I have nought but this to crave | M2 |
Make me thy mean to give them to the grave | M2 |
Thy sign that all men seeing may speak thee just | K |
Thy word which turns the strengths of sin to dust | K |
Thy blast which burns up towers and thrones with fire | E2 |
Lord is this gift this grace that I require | E2 |
So great a gift Lord for thy grace to give | N2 |
And bid me bear thy part retributive | N2 |
That I whom scorn makes mouths at I might be | T |
Thy witness if loud sin may mock at thee | T |
For lo my life is as a barren ear | E2 |
Plucked from the sheaf dark days drive past me here | E2 |
Downtrodden while joy's reapers pile their sheaves | O2 |
A thing more vile than autumn's weariest leaves | O2 |
For these the sun filled once with sap of life | N2 |
O thou my lord that hadst me to thy wife | N2 |
Dost thou not fear at all remembering me | T |
The love that bowed my whole soul down to thee | T |
Is this so wholly nought for man to dread | K |
Man whose life walks between the quick and dead | K |
Naked and warred about with wind and sea | T |
That one should love and hate as I do thee | T |
That one should live in all the world his foe | N2 |
So mortal as the hate that loves him so | N2 |
Nought is it nought O husband O my knight | K |
O strong man and indomitable in fight | K |
That one more weak than foam bells on the sea | T |
Should have in heart such thoughts as I of thee | T |
Thou art bound about with stately strengths for bands | P2 |
What strength shall keep thee from my strengthless hands | P2 |
Thou art girt about with goodly guards and great | K |
What fosse may fence thee round as deep as hate | K |
Thou art wise will wisdom teach thee fear of me | T |
Thou art great of heart shall this deliver thee | T |
What wall so massive or what tower so high | N2 |
Shall be thy surety that thou shouldst not die | N2 |
If that which comes against thee be but I | N2 |
Who shall rise up of power to take thy part | K |
What skill find strength to save what strength find art | K |
If that which wars against thee be my heart | K |
Not iron nor the might of force afield | K |
Nor edge of sword nor sheltering weight of shield | K |
Nor all thy fame since all thy praise began | Q2 |
Nor all the love and laud thou hast of man | Q2 |
Nor though his noiseless hours with wool be shod | K |
Shall God's love keep thee from the wrath of God | K |
O son of sorrows hast thou said at heart | K |
Haply God loves thee God shall take thy part | K |
Who hath all these years endured thee since thy birth | J |
From sorrow's womb bade sin be born on earth | J |
So long he hath cast his buckler over thee | T |
Shall he not surely guard thee even from me | T |
Yea but if yet he give thee while I live | N2 |
Into mine hands as he shall surely give | N2 |
Ere death at last bring darkness on thy face | R2 |
Call then on him call not on me for grace | R2 |
Cast not away one prayer one suppliant breath | J |
On me that commune all this while with death | J |
For I that was not and that was thy wife | N2 |
Desire not but one hour of all thy life | N2 |
Wherein to triumph till that hour be past | K |
But this mine hour I look for is thy last | K |
- | |
So mused she till the fire in sea and sky | N2 |
Sank and the northwest wind spake harsh on high | N2 |
And like the sea's heart waxed her heart that heard | K |
Strong dark and bitter till the keen wind's word | K |
Seemed of her own soul spoken and the breath | J |
All round her not of darkness but of death | J |
Algernon Charles Swinburne
(1)
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