Julian And Maddalo (excerpt) Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: AABBCCDDEEEFGHHIIJJK LMMNNOOOOPPQQRAIMSSA AIITTAAOOOOOOAAIIPPU UAVOOMMOOWMMMOOMMXXY ZQQOOA2A2B2B2C2C2A2A 2AMAAA2A2AAD2D2D2OOM MAAMMMAAAE2E2WIA2A2A AAMF2F2AAMMAAA2A2IIA M E2E2OOG2G2C2C2IIOOAA AOOOOIIH2H2G2G2IIMMA AAAG2G2MMAAAI rode one evening with Count Maddalo | A |
Upon the bank of land which breaks the flow | A |
Of Adria towards Venice a bare strand | B |
Of hillocks heap'd from ever shifting sand | B |
Matted with thistles and amphibious weeds | C |
Such as from earth's embrace the salt ooze breeds | C |
Is this an uninhabited sea side | D |
Which the lone fisher when his nets are dried | D |
Abandons and no other object breaks | E |
The waste but one dwarf tree and some few stakes | E |
Broken and unrepair'd and the tide makes | E |
A narrow space of level sand thereon | F |
Where 'twas our wont to ride while day went down | G |
This ride was my delight I love all waste | H |
And solitary places where we taste | H |
The pleasure of believing what we see | I |
Is boundless as we wish our souls to be | I |
And such was this wide ocean and this shore | J |
More barren than its billows and yet more | J |
Than all with a remember'd friend I love | K |
To ride as then I rode for the winds drove | L |
The living spray along the sunny air | M |
Into our faces the blue heavens were bare | M |
Stripp'd to their depths by the awakening north | N |
And from the waves sound like delight broke forth | N |
Harmonizing with solitude and sent | O |
Into our hearts a euml real merriment | O |
So as we rode we talk'd and the swift thought | O |
Winging itself with laughter linger'd not | O |
But flew from brain to brain such glee was ours | P |
Charg'd with light memories of remember'd hours | P |
None slow enough for sadness till we came | Q |
Homeward which always makes the spirit tame | Q |
This day had been cheerful but cold and now | R |
The sun was sinking and the wind also | A |
Our talk grew somewhat serious as may be | I |
Talk interrupted with such raillery | M |
As mocks itself because it cannot scorn | S |
The thoughts it would extinguish 'twas forlorn | S |
Yet pleasing such as once so poets tell | A |
The devils held within the dales of Hell | A |
Concerning God freewill and destiny | I |
Of all that earth has been or yet may be | I |
All that vain men imagine or believe | T |
Or hope can paint or suffering may achieve | T |
We descanted and I for ever still | A |
Is it not wise to make the best of ill | A |
Argu'd against despondency but pride | O |
Made my companion take the darker side | O |
The sense that he was greater than his kind | O |
Had struck methinks his eagle spirit blind | O |
By gazing on its own exceeding light | O |
Meanwhile the sun paus'd ere it should alight | O |
Over the horizon of the mountains Oh | A |
How beautiful is sunset when the glow | A |
Of Heaven descends upon a land like thee | I |
Thou Paradise of exiles Italy | I |
Thy mountains seas and vineyards and the towers | P |
Of cities they encircle It was ours | P |
To stand on thee beholding it and then | U |
Just where we had dismounted the Count's men | U |
Were waiting for us with the gondola | A |
As those who pause on some delightful way | V |
Though bent on pleasant pilgrimage we stood | O |
Looking upon the evening and the flood | O |
Which lay between the city and the shore | M |
Pav'd with the image of the sky The hoar | M |
And a euml ry Alps towards the North appear'd | O |
Through mist an heaven sustaining bulwark rear'd | O |
Between the East and West and half the sky | W |
Was roof'd with clouds of rich emblazonry | M |
Dark purple at the zenith which still grew | M |
Down the steep West into a wondrous hue | M |
Brighter than burning gold even to the rent | O |
Where the swift sun yet paus'd in his descent | O |
Among the many folded hills they were | M |
Those famous Euganean hills which bear | M |
As seen from Lido thro' the harbour piles | X |
The likeness of a clump of peak egrave d isles | X |
And then as if the Earth and Sea had been | Y |
Dissolv'd into one lake of fire were seen | Z |
Those mountains towering as from waves of flame | Q |
Around the vaporous sun from which there came | Q |
The inmost purple spirit of light and made | O |
Their very peaks transparent Ere it fade | O |
Said my companion I will show you soon | A2 |
A better station so o'er the lagune | A2 |
We glided and from that funereal bark | B2 |
I lean'd and saw the city and could mark | B2 |
How from their many isles in evening's gleam | C2 |
Its temples and its palaces did seem | C2 |
Like fabrics of enchantment pil'd to Heaven | A2 |
I was about to speak when We are even | A2 |
Now at the point I meant said Maddalo | A |
And bade the gondolieri cease to row | M |
Look Julian on the west and listen well | A |
If you hear not a deep and heavy bell | A |
I look'd and saw between us and the sun | A2 |
A building on an island such a one | A2 |
As age to age might add for uses vile | A |
A windowless deform'd and dreary pile | A |
And on the top an open tower where hung | D2 |
A bell which in the radiance sway'd and swung | D2 |
We could just hear its hoarse and iron tongue | D2 |
The broad sun sunk behind it and it toll'd | O |
In strong and black relief What we behold | O |
Shall be the madhouse and its belfry tower | M |
Said Maddalo and ever at this hour | M |
Those who may cross the water hear that bell | A |
Which calls the maniacs each one from his cell | A |
To vespers As much skill as need to pray | M |
In thanks or hope for their dark lot have they | M |
To their stern Maker I replied O ho | M |
You talk as in years past said Maddalo | A |
'Tis strange men change not You were ever still | A |
Among Christ's flock a perilous infidel | A |
A wolf for the meek lambs if you can't swim | E2 |
Beware of Providence I look'd on him | E2 |
But the gay smile had faded in his eye | W |
And such he cried is our mortality | I |
And this must be the emblem and the sign | A2 |
Of what should be eternal and divine | A2 |
And like that black and dreary bell the soul | A |
Hung in a heaven illumin'd tower must toll | A |
Our thoughts and our desires to meet below | A |
Round the rent heart and pray as madmen do | M |
For what they know not till the night of death | F2 |
As sunset that strange vision severeth | F2 |
Our memory from itself and us from all | A |
We sought and yet were baffled I recall | A |
The sense of what he said although I mar | M |
The force of his expressions The broad star | M |
Of day meanwhile had sunk behind the hill | A |
And the black bell became invisible | A |
And the red tower look'd gray and all between | A2 |
The churches ships and palaces were seen | A2 |
Huddled in gloom into the purple sea | I |
The orange hues of heaven sunk silently | I |
We hardly spoke and soon the gondola | A |
Convey'd me to my lodgings by the way | M |
- | |
The following morn was rainy cold and dim | E2 |
Ere Maddalo arose I call'd on him | E2 |
And whilst I waited with his child I play'd | O |
A lovelier toy sweet Nature never made | O |
A serious subtle wild yet gentle being | G2 |
Graceful without design and unforeseeing | G2 |
With eyes Oh speak not of her eyes which seem | C2 |
Twin mirrors of Italian Heaven yet gleam | C2 |
With such deep meaning as we never see | I |
But in the human countenance with me | I |
She was a special favourite I had nurs'd | O |
Her fine and feeble limbs when she came first | O |
To this bleak world and she yet seem'd to know | A |
On second sight her ancient playfellow | A |
Less chang'd than she was by six months or so | A |
For after her first shyness was worn out | O |
We sate there rolling billiard balls about | O |
When the Count enter'd Salutations past | O |
The word you spoke last night might well have cast | O |
A darkness on my spirit if man be | I |
The passive thing you say I should not see | I |
Much harm in the religions and old saws | H2 |
Though I may never own such leaden laws | H2 |
Which break a teachless nature to the yoke | G2 |
Mine is another faith thus much I spoke | G2 |
And noting he replied not added See | I |
This lovely child blithe innocent and free | I |
She spends a happy time with little care | M |
While we to such sick thoughts subjected are | M |
As came on you last night It is our will | A |
That thus enchains us to permitted ill | A |
We might be otherwise We might be all | A |
We dream of happy high majestical | A |
Where is the love beauty and truth we seek | G2 |
But in our mind and if we were not weak | G2 |
Should we be less in deed than in desire | M |
Ay if we were not weak and we aspire | M |
How vainly to be strong said Maddalo | A |
You talk Utopia It remains to know | A |
I the | A |
Percy Bysshe Shelley
(1)
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