Virgils Gnat Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABACCDCDDDDDAA EFEGEGHH CECGCAII DDDDDDEE EGAGCGDD DJDEDEDD DDDDDDD DCDEDKCC EDEDEDGG DCDCDCGG DGDGDG LDLDLDJJ MDCDCDAA G G G D DKDKDKDD DADADADD NCNCNCCC EDEDEDCC CDCDCDDD GNGNGNKK ODODODDD ADADADCCWrong'd yet not daring to expresse my paine | A |
To you great Lord the causer of my care | B |
In clowdie teares my case I thus complaine | A |
Vnto yourselfe that onely priuie are | C |
But if that any Oedipus vnware | C |
Shall chaunce through power of some diuining spright | D |
To reade the secrete of this riddle rare | C |
And know the purporte of my euill plight | D |
Let him rest pleased with his owne insight | D |
Ne further seeke to glose vpon the text | D |
For griefe enough it is to grieued wight | D |
To feele his fault and not be further vext | D |
But what so by my selfe may not be showen | A |
May by this Gnatts complaint be easily knowen | A |
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We now haue playde Augustus wantonly | E |
Tuning our song vnto a tender Muse | F |
And like a cobweb weauing slenderly | E |
Haue onely playde let thus much then excuse | G |
This Gnats small Poeme that th' whole history | E |
Is but a jest though envie it abuse | G |
But who such sports and sweet delights doth blame | H |
Shall lighter seeme than this Gnats idle name | H |
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Hereafter when as season more secure | C |
Shall bring forth fruit this Muse shall speak to thee | E |
In bigger notes that may thy sense allure | C |
And for thy worth frame some fit Poesie | G |
The golden offspring of Latona pure | C |
And ornament of great Ioues progenie | A |
Phoebus shall be the author of my song | I |
Playing on iuorie harp with siluer strong | I |
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He shall inspire my verse with gentle mood | D |
Of Poets Prince whether he woon beside | D |
Faire Xanthus sprincled with Chim ras blood | D |
Or in the woods of Astery abide | D |
Or whereas mount Parnasse the Muses brood | D |
Doth his broad forhead like two hornes diuide | D |
And the sweete waues of sounding Castaly | E |
With liquid foote doth slide downe easily | E |
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Wherefore ye Sisters which the glorie bee | E |
Of the Pierian streames fayre Naiades | G |
Go too and dauncing all in companie | A |
Adorne that God and thou holie Pales | G |
To whome the honest care of husbandrie | C |
Returneth by continuall successe | G |
Haue care for to pursue his footing light | D |
Throgh the wide woods groues with green leaues dight | D |
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Professing thee I lifted am aloft | D |
Betwixt the forrest wide and starrie sky | J |
And thou most dread Octauius which oft | D |
To learned wits giuest courage worthily | E |
O come thou sacred childe come sliding soft | D |
And fauour my beginnings graciously | E |
For not these leaues do sing that dreadfull stound | D |
When Giants bloud did staine Phlegr an ground | D |
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Nor how th' halfe horsy people Centaures hight | D |
Fought with the bloudie Lapithaes at bord | D |
Nor how the East with tyranous despight | D |
Burnt th Attick towres and people slew with sword | D |
Was digged downe nor yron bands abord | D |
The Pontick sea by their huge Nauy cast | D |
My volume shall renowne so long since past | D |
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Nor Hellespont trampled with horses feete | D |
When flocking Persians did the Greeks affray | C |
But my soft Muse as for her power more meete | D |
Delights with Phoebus friendly leaue to play | E |
An easie running verse with tender feete | D |
And thou dread sacred child to thee alway | K |
Let euerlasting lightsome glory striue | C |
Through the worlds endles ages to suruiue | C |
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And let an happie roome remaine for thee | E |
Mongst heauenly ranks where blessed soules do rest | D |
And let long lasting life with ioyous glee | E |
As thy due meede that thou deseruest best | D |
Hereafter many yeares remembred be | E |
Amongst good men of whom thou oft are blest | D |
Liue thou for euer in all happinesse | G |
But let us turne to our first businesse | G |
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The fiery sun was mounted now on hight | D |
Vp to the heauenly towers and shot each where | C |
Out of his golden Charet glistering light | D |
And fayre Aurora with her rosie heare | C |
The hatefull darknes now had put to flight | D |
When as the shepheard seeing day appeare | C |
His little Goats gan driue out of their stalls | G |
To feede abroad where pasture best befalls | G |
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To an high mountaines top he with them went | D |
Where thickest grasse did cloath the open hills | G |
They now amongst the woods and thickets ment | D |
Now in the valleies wandring at their wills | G |
Spread themselues farre abroad through each descent | D |
Some on the soft greene grasse feeding their fills | G |
Some clambring through the hollow cliffes on hy | - |
Nibble the bushie shrubs which growe thereby | - |
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Others the vtmost boughs of trees doe crop | L |
And brouze the woodbine twigges that freshly bud | D |
This with full bit doth catch the vtmost top | L |
Of some soft Willow or new growen stud | D |
This with sharpe teeth the brambles leaues doth lop | L |
And chaw the tender prickles in her Cud | D |
The whiles another high doth ouerlooke | J |
Her owne like image in christall brooke | J |
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O the great happines which shepheards haue | M |
Who so loathes not too much the poor estate | D |
With minde that ill vse doth before depraue | C |
Ne measures all things by the costly rate | D |
Of riotise and semblants outward braue | C |
No such sad cares as wont to macerate | D |
And rend the greedie mindes of couetous men | A |
Do euer creepe into the shepheards den | A |
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Ne cares he if the fleece which him arayes | G |
Be not twice steeped in Assyrian dye | - |
Ne glistering of golde which vnderlayes | G |
The summer beames doe blinde his gazing eye | - |
Ne pictures beautie nor the glauncing rayes | G |
Of precious stones whence no good commeth by | - |
Of B tus or of Alcons vanity | D |
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Ne ought the whelky pearles esteemeth hee | D |
Which are from Indian seas brought far away | K |
But with pure brest from carefull sorrow free | D |
On the soft grasse his limbs doth oft display | K |
In sweete spring time when flowres varietie | D |
With sundrie colours paints the sprincled lay | K |
There lyin all at ease from guile or spight | D |
With pype of fennie reedes doth him delight | D |
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There he Lord of himselfe with palme bedight | D |
His looser locks doth wrap in wreath of vine | A |
There his milk dropping Goats be his delight | D |
And fruitful Pales and the forrest greene | A |
And darkesome caues in pleasaunt vallies pight | D |
Whereas continuall shade is to be seene | A |
And where fresh sprining wells as christall neate | D |
Do alwayes flow to quench his thirstie heate | D |
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O who can lead them to a more happie life | N |
Than he that with cleane minde and heart sincere | C |
No greedy riches knowes nor bloudie strife | N |
No deadly fight of warlick fleete doth feare | C |
Ne runs in perill of foes cruell knife | N |
That in the sacred temples he may reare | C |
A trophee of his glittering spoyels and treasure | C |
Or may abound in riches aboue measure | C |
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Of him his God is worshipt with his sythe | E |
And not with skill of craftsman polished | D |
He ioyes in groues and makes himselfe full blythe | E |
With sundrie flowers in wilde fieldes gathered | D |
Ne frankincens he from Panch a buyth | E |
Sweete quiet harbours in his harmeles head | D |
And perfect pleasure builds her iouyous bowre | C |
Free from sad cares that rich mens hearts deuowre | C |
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This all his care this all his whole indeuour | C |
To this his minde and senses he doth bend | D |
How he may flow in quiets matchles treasour | C |
Content with any food that God doth send | D |
And how his limbs resolu'd through idle leisour | C |
Vnto sweete sleepe he may securely lend | D |
In some coole shadow from the scorching heate | D |
The whiles his flock their chawed cuds do eate | D |
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O flocks O Faunes and O ye pleasaunt springs | G |
Of Tempe where the countrey Nymphs are rife | N |
Through whose not costly care each shepheard sings | G |
As merrie notes vpon his rusticke Fife | N |
As that Ascr an bard whose fame now rings | G |
Through the wide world and leads as ioyfull life | N |
Free from all troubles and from worldly toyle | K |
In which fond men doe all their dayes turmoyle | K |
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In such delights whilst thus his carelesse time | O |
This shepheard driues vpleaning on his batt | D |
And on shrill reedes chaunting his rustick rime | O |
Hyperion throwing foorth his beames full hott | D |
Into the highest top of heauen gan clime | O |
And the world parting by an equall lott | D |
Did shed his whirling flames on either side | D |
As the great Ocean doth himselfe diuide | D |
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Then gan the shepheard gather into one | A |
His stragling Goates and draue them to a foord | D |
Whose c rule streame rombling in Pible stone | A |
Crept vnder mosse as greene as any goord | D |
Now had the Sun halfe heauen ouergone | A |
When he heard back from that water foord | D |
Draue from the force of Phoebus boyling ray | C |
Into thick shadowes there themselues to lay | C |
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Soone as he them plac'd in thy sacred w | - |
Edmund Spenser
(1)
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