"Far, far too dear to ev'ry mortal Breast, / Sweet to the Soul, as Hony to the Taste; / Gath'ring like Vapours of a noxious kind / From fiery Blood, and dark'ning all the Mind."
— Pope, Alexander (1688-1744)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed by W. Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott
Date
1715-1720
Metaphor
"Far, far too dear to ev'ry mortal Breast, / Sweet to the Soul, as Hony to the Taste; / Gath'ring like Vapours of a noxious kind / From fiery Blood, and dark'ning all the Mind."
Metaphor in Context
A Flood of Tears, at this, the Goddess shed:
Ah then, I see thee dying, see thee dead!
When Hector falls, thou dy'st.--Let Hector die,
And let me fall! ( Achilles made reply)
Far lyes Patroclus from his native plain!
He fell, and falling wish'd my Aid in vain.
Ah then, since from this miserable Day
I cast all hope of my Return away,
Since unreveng'd, a hundred Ghosts demand
The Fate of Hector from Achilles' hand;
Since here, for brutal Courage far renown'd,
I live an idle Burden to the Ground,
(Others in Council fam'd for nobler Skill,
More useful to preserve, than I to kill)
Let me--But oh! ye gracious Pow'rs above!
Wrath and Revenge from Men and Gods remove:
Far, far too dear to ev'ry mortal Breast,
Sweet to the Soul, as Hony to the Taste;
Gath'ring like Vapours of a noxious kind
From fiery Blood, and dark'ning all the Mind.
Me Agamemnon urg'd to deadly Hate;
'Tis past--I quell it; I resign to Fate.
Yes--I will meet the Murd'rer of my Friend,
Or (if the Gods ordain it) meet my End.
The Stroke of Fate the bravest cannot shun:
The great Alcides ,Jove 's unequal'd Son,
To Juno 's Hate at length resign'd his Breath,
And sunk the Victim of all-conqu'ring Death.
So shall Achilles fall! stretch'd pale and dead,
No more the Grecian Hope, or Trojan Dread!
Let me, this instant, rush into the Fields,
And reap what Glory Life's short Harvest yields.
Shall I not force some widow'd Dame to tear
With frantic Hands, her long dishevell'd Hair?
Shall I not force her Breast to heave with Sighs,
And the soft Tears to trickle from her Eyes?
Yes, I shall give the Fair those mournful Charms--
In vain you hold me--Hence! my Arms, my Arms
Soon shall the sanguine Torrent spread so wide,
That all shall know, Achilles swells the Tide.
Ah then, I see thee dying, see thee dead!
When Hector falls, thou dy'st.--Let Hector die,
And let me fall! ( Achilles made reply)
Far lyes Patroclus from his native plain!
He fell, and falling wish'd my Aid in vain.
Ah then, since from this miserable Day
I cast all hope of my Return away,
Since unreveng'd, a hundred Ghosts demand
The Fate of Hector from Achilles' hand;
Since here, for brutal Courage far renown'd,
I live an idle Burden to the Ground,
(Others in Council fam'd for nobler Skill,
More useful to preserve, than I to kill)
Let me--But oh! ye gracious Pow'rs above!
Wrath and Revenge from Men and Gods remove:
Far, far too dear to ev'ry mortal Breast,
Sweet to the Soul, as Hony to the Taste;
Gath'ring like Vapours of a noxious kind
From fiery Blood, and dark'ning all the Mind.
Me Agamemnon urg'd to deadly Hate;
'Tis past--I quell it; I resign to Fate.
Yes--I will meet the Murd'rer of my Friend,
Or (if the Gods ordain it) meet my End.
The Stroke of Fate the bravest cannot shun:
The great Alcides ,Jove 's unequal'd Son,
To Juno 's Hate at length resign'd his Breath,
And sunk the Victim of all-conqu'ring Death.
So shall Achilles fall! stretch'd pale and dead,
No more the Grecian Hope, or Trojan Dread!
Let me, this instant, rush into the Fields,
And reap what Glory Life's short Harvest yields.
Shall I not force some widow'd Dame to tear
With frantic Hands, her long dishevell'd Hair?
Shall I not force her Breast to heave with Sighs,
And the soft Tears to trickle from her Eyes?
Yes, I shall give the Fair those mournful Charms--
In vain you hold me--Hence! my Arms, my Arms
Soon shall the sanguine Torrent spread so wide,
That all shall know, Achilles swells the Tide.
Categories
Provenance
HDIS
Citation
17 entries in ESTC (1715, 1718, 1720, 1721, 1729, 1732, 1736, 1738, 1754, 1767, 1770, 1790, 1791, 1796). Vol. 2 is dated 1716; vol. 3, 1717; vol. 4, 1718; vols. 5 and 6, 1720.
See The Iliad of Homer, Translated by Mr. Pope, 6 vols. (London: Printed by W. Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott, 1715-1720). <Link to ESTC><Link to Vol. I in ECCO-TCP><Vol. II><Vol. III><Vol. IV><Vol. V><Vol. VI>
See The Iliad of Homer, Translated by Mr. Pope, 6 vols. (London: Printed by W. Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott, 1715-1720). <Link to ESTC><Link to Vol. I in ECCO-TCP><Vol. II><Vol. III><Vol. IV><Vol. V><Vol. VI>
Date of Entry
10/26/2003
Date of Review
07/12/2004
