The Flaming Heart Upon The Book And Picture Of Saint Teresa Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: A BBCADEFFGGHH IIHHJJKKLAHHMMNNOOLL PPQQ RRSSQQ AAEE JJTTUVWWSSHH XYZZHHPPQQ AAA2A2QQTTHHOOB2B2JJ QQOOC2C2JJB2B2VVOOAA B2B2HHJJD2D2As she is usually expressed with a Seraphim beside her | A |
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Well meaning readers you that come as friends | B |
And catch the precious name this piece pretends | B |
Make not too much haste to admire | C |
That fair cheeked fallacy of fire | A |
That is a Seraphim they say | D |
And this the great Teresia | E |
Readers be rul'd by me and make | F |
Here a well plac'd and wise mistake | F |
You must transpose the picture quite | G |
And spell it wrong to read it right | G |
Read him for her and her for him | H |
And call the saint the Seraphim | H |
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Painter what did'st thou understand | I |
To put her dart into his hand | I |
See even the years and size of him | H |
Shows this the mother Seraphim | H |
This is the mistress flame and duteous he | J |
Her happy fireworks here comes down to see | J |
O most poor spirited of men | K |
Had thy cold pencil kist her pen | K |
Thou couldst not so unkindly err | L |
To show us this faint shade for her | A |
Why man this speaks pure mortal frame | H |
And mocks with female frost love's manly flame | H |
One would suspect thou meant'st to paint | M |
Some weak inferior woman saint | M |
But had thy pale fac'd purple took | N |
Fire from the burning cheeks of that bright book | N |
Thou wouldst on her have leapt up all | O |
That could be found seraphical | O |
Whate'er this youth of fire wears fair | L |
Rosy fingers radiant hair | L |
Glowing cheek and glistering wings | P |
All those fair and flagrant things | P |
But before all that fiery dart | Q |
Had fill'd the hand of this great heart | Q |
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Do then as equal right requires | R |
Since his the blushes be and hers the fires | R |
Resume and rectify thy rude design | S |
Undress thy Seraphim into mine | S |
Redeem this injury of thy art | Q |
Give him the veil give her the dart | Q |
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Give him the veil that he may cover | A |
The red cheeks of a rivall'd lover | A |
Asham'd that our world now can show | E |
Nests of new Seraphims here below | E |
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Give her the dart for it is she | J |
Fair youth shoots both thy shaft and thee | J |
Say all ye wise and well pierc'd hearts | T |
That live and die amidst her darts | T |
What is't your tasteful spirits do prove | U |
In that rare life of her and love | V |
Say and bear witness Sends she not | W |
A Seraphim at every shot | W |
What magazines of immortal arms there shine | S |
Heav'n's great artillery in each love spun line | S |
Give then the dart to her who gives the flame | H |
Give him the veil who kindly takes the shame | H |
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But if it be the frequent fate | X |
Of worst faults to be fortunate | Y |
If all's prescription and proud wrong | Z |
Hearkens not to an humble song | Z |
For all the gallantry of him | H |
Give me the suff'ring Seraphim | H |
His be the bravery of all those bright things | P |
The glowing cheeks the glistering wings | P |
The rosy hand the radiant dart | Q |
Leave her alone the Flaming Heart | Q |
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Leave her that and thou shalt leave her | A |
Not one loose shaft but love's whole quiver | A |
For in love's field was never found | A2 |
A nobler weapon than a wound | A2 |
Love's passives are his activ'st part | Q |
The wounded is the wounding heart | Q |
O heart the equal poise of love's both parts | T |
Big alike with wound and darts | T |
Live in these conquering leaves live all the same | H |
And walk through all tongues one triumphant flame | H |
Live here great heart and love and die and kill | O |
And bleed and wound and yield and conquer still | O |
Let this immortal life where'er it comes | B2 |
Walk in a crowd of loves and martyrdoms | B2 |
Let mystic deaths wait on't and wise souls be | J |
The love slain witnesses of this life of thee | J |
O sweet incendiary show here thy art | Q |
Upon this carcass of a hard cold heart | Q |
Let all thy scatter'd shafts of light that play | O |
Among the leaves of thy large books of day | O |
Combined against this breast at once break in | C2 |
And take away from me my self and sin | C2 |
This gracious robbery shall thy bounty be | J |
And my best fortunes such fair spoils of me | J |
O thou undaunted daughter of desires | B2 |
By all thy dow'r of lights and fires | B2 |
By all the eagle in thee all the dove | V |
By all thy lives and deaths of love | V |
By thy large draughts of intellectual day | O |
And by thy thirsts of love more large than they | O |
By all thy brim fill'd bowls of fierce desire | A |
By the last morning's draught of liquid fire | A |
By the full kingdom of that final kiss | B2 |
That seiz'd thy parting soul and seal'd thee his | B2 |
By all the heav'ns thou hast in him | H |
Fair sister of the Seraphim | H |
By all of him we have in thee | J |
Leave nothing of my self in me | J |
Let me so read thy life that I | D2 |
Unto all life of mine may die | D2 |
Richard Crashaw
(1)
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