Satire Ii:the Country Mouse And The Town Mouse Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCBDBDEDEFEFEFEGEGH GHEHEGEGIGJKIKEKELEE GEGLGLBLBBBEMBMNMNON OPODEDEQEQRQREREBSBE BEBEBMSTETEEEEMEMUMU VEVEVEBEB| MY mother's maids when they did sew and spin | A |
| They sang sometime a song of the field mouse | B |
| That for because her livelood was but thin livelihood | C |
| Would needs go seek her townish sister's house | B |
| She thought herself endured to much pain | D |
| The stormy blasts her cave so sore did souse | B |
| That when the furrows swimmed with the rain | D |
| She must lie cold and wet in sorry plight | E |
| And worse than that bare meat there did remain | D |
| To comfort her when she her house had dight | E |
| Sometime a barleycorn sometime a bean | F |
| For which she labored hard both day and night | E |
| In harvest time whilst she might go and glean | F |
| And when her store was 'stroyed with the flood | E |
| Then well away for she undone was clean | F |
| Then was she fain to take instead of food | E |
| Sleep if she might her hunger to beguile | G |
| My sister qoth she hath a living good | E |
| And hence from me she dwelleth not a mile | G |
| In cold and storm she lieth warm and dry | H |
| In bed of down and dirt doth not defile | G |
| Her tender foot she laboreth not as I | H |
| Richly she feedeth and at the rich man's cost | E |
| And for her meat she needs not crave nor cry | H |
| By sea by land of the delicates the most | E |
| Her cater seeks and spareth for no peril | G |
| She feedeth on boiled baken meat and roast | E |
| And hath thereof neither charge nor travail | G |
| And when she list the liquor of the grape | I |
| Doth goad her heart till that her belly swell | G |
| And at this journey she maketh but a jape joke | J |
| So forth she goeth trusting of all this wealth | K |
| With her sister her part so for to shape | I |
| That if she might keep herself in health | K |
| To live a lady while her life doth last | E |
| And to the door now is she come by stealth | K |
| And with her foot anon she scrapeth full fast | E |
| The other for fear durst not well scarce appear | L |
| Of every noise so was the wretch aghast | E |
| Peace quoth the town mouse why speakest thou so loud | E |
| And by the hand she took her fair and well | G |
| Welcome quoth she my sister by the rood | E |
| She feasted her that joy is was to tell | G |
| The fare they had they drank the wine so clear | L |
| And as to purpose now and then it fell | G |
| She cheered her with How sister what cheer | L |
| Amids this joy there fell a sorry chance | B |
| That wellaway the stranger bought full dear | L |
| The fare she had For as she looks askance | B |
| Under a stool she spied two steaming eyes | B |
| In a round head with sharp ears In France | B |
| was never mouse so feared for though the unwise afraid | E |
| Had not yseen such a beast before | M |
| Yet had nature taught her after her guise | B |
| To know her foe and dread him evermore | M |
| The town mouse fled she knew whither to go | N |
| The other had no shift but wondrous sore | M |
| Feared of her life at home she wished her though | N |
| And to the door alas as she did skip | O |
| Th' heaven it would lo and eke her chance was so | N |
| At the threshold her silly foot did trip | O |
| And ere she might recover it again | P |
| The traitor cat had caught her by the hip | O |
| And made her there against her will remain | D |
| That had forgotten her poor surety and rest | E |
| For seeming wealth wherein she thought to reign | D |
| Alas my Poynz how men do seek the best a friend of Wyatt | E |
| And find the worst by error as they stray | Q |
| And no marvel when sight is so opprest | E |
| And blind the guide Anon out of the way | Q |
| Goeth guide and all in seeking quiet life | R |
| O wretched minds there is no gold that may | Q |
| Grant that ye seek no war no peace no strife | R |
| No no although thy head was hoopt with gold crowned | E |
| Sergeant with mace haubert sword nor knife | R |
| Cannot repulse the care that follow should | E |
| Each kind of life hath with him his disease | B |
| Live in delight even as thy lust would as you would desire | S |
| And thou shalt find when lust doth most thee please | B |
| It irketh strait and by itself doth fade | E |
| A small thing it is that may thy mind appease | B |
| None of ye all there is that is so mad | E |
| To seek grapes upon brambles or breers briars | B |
| Not none I trow that hath his wit so bad | E |
| To set his hay for conies over rivers snares for rabbits | B |
| Ne ye set not a drag net for an hare nor | M |
| And yet the thing that most is your desire | S |
| Ye do misseek with more travail and care | T |
| Make plain thine heart that it be not notted | E |
| With hope or dread and see thy will be bare | T |
| From all effects whom vice hath ever spotted | E |
| Thyself content with that is thee assigned | E |
| And use it well that is to thee allotted | E |
| Then seek no more out of thyself to find | E |
| The thing that thou hast sought so long before | M |
| For thou shalt find it sitting in thy mind | E |
| Mad if ye list to continue your sore | M |
| Let present pass and gape on time to come | U |
| And deep yourself in travail more and more | M |
| Henceforth my Poynz this shall be all and some | U |
| These wretched fools shall have nought else of me | V |
| But to the great God and to His high doom judgment | E |
| None other pain pray I for them to be | V |
| But when the rage doth lead them from the right | E |
| That looking backward Virtue they may see | V |
| Even as She is so goodly fair and bright | E |
| And whilst they clasp their lusts in arms across | B |
| Grant them good Lord as Thou mayst of Thy might | E |
| To fret inward for losing such a loss | B |
Sir Thomas Wyatt
(1)
Poem topics: , Print This Poem , Rhyme Scheme
Submit Spanish Translation
Submit German Translation
Submit French Translation
About Satire Ii:the Country Mouse And The Town Mouse
Satire Ii:the Country Mouse And The Town Mouse is a poem by Sir Thomas Wyatt. This page includes the poem text, poet information, related topics, comments, and similar poems.
Write your comment about Satire Ii:the Country Mouse And The Town Mouse poem by Sir Thomas Wyatt
Best Poems of Sir Thomas Wyatt