"Still can my Soul in Fancy's Mirrour view / Deeds glorious once."
— Somervile, William (1675-1742)
Work Title
Date
1735
Metaphor
"Still can my Soul in Fancy's Mirrour view / Deeds glorious once."
Metaphor in Context
Ye vig'rous Youths, by smiling Fortune blest
With large Demesnes, hereditary Wealth,
Heap'd copious by your wise Fore-Fathers Care,
Hear and attend! while I the Means reveal
T' enjoy those Pleasures, for the Weak too strong,
Too costly for the Poor: To rein the Steed
Swift-stretching o'er the Plain, to chear the Pack
Op'ning in Consorts of harmonious Joy,
But breathing Death. What tho' the Gripe severe
Of brazen-fisted Time, and slow Disease
Creeping thro' ev'ry Vein, and Nerve unstrung,
Afflict my shatter'd Frame, undaunted still,
Fix'd as a Mountain Ash, that braves the Bolts
Of angry Jove; tho' blasted, yet unfall'n;
Still can my Soul in Fancy's Mirrour view
Deeds glorious once, recal the joyous Scene
In all its Splendors deck'd, o'er the full Bowl
Recount my Triumphs past, urge others on
With Hand and Voice, and point the winding Way:
Pleas'd with that social sweet Garrulity,
The poor disbanded Vet'ran's sole Delight.
(pp. 6-7)
With large Demesnes, hereditary Wealth,
Heap'd copious by your wise Fore-Fathers Care,
Hear and attend! while I the Means reveal
T' enjoy those Pleasures, for the Weak too strong,
Too costly for the Poor: To rein the Steed
Swift-stretching o'er the Plain, to chear the Pack
Op'ning in Consorts of harmonious Joy,
But breathing Death. What tho' the Gripe severe
Of brazen-fisted Time, and slow Disease
Creeping thro' ev'ry Vein, and Nerve unstrung,
Afflict my shatter'd Frame, undaunted still,
Fix'd as a Mountain Ash, that braves the Bolts
Of angry Jove; tho' blasted, yet unfall'n;
Still can my Soul in Fancy's Mirrour view
Deeds glorious once, recal the joyous Scene
In all its Splendors deck'd, o'er the full Bowl
Recount my Triumphs past, urge others on
With Hand and Voice, and point the winding Way:
Pleas'd with that social sweet Garrulity,
The poor disbanded Vet'ran's sole Delight.
(pp. 6-7)
Categories
Provenance
Searching "soul" and "mirrour" ("mirror") in HDIS (Poetry); found again "fancy"; confirmed in 1735 edition in ECCO.
Citation
22 entries in ESTC (1735, 1743, 1749, 1755, 1757, 1758, 1766, 1767, 1768, 1773, 1786, 1796, 1799, 1800).
Text from The Chace. A Poem. To Which Is Added, Hobbinol, or the Rural Games: a Burlesque Poem, in Blank Verse. By William Somervile, Esq. 4th ed. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by M. Cooper at the Globe in Pater-Noster-Row, 1749). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
See also The Chace. A Poem. By William Somervile, Esq. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by T. Cooper, 1735). <Link to 3rd ed. of 1735 in ECCO>
Text from The Chace. A Poem. To Which Is Added, Hobbinol, or the Rural Games: a Burlesque Poem, in Blank Verse. By William Somervile, Esq. 4th ed. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by M. Cooper at the Globe in Pater-Noster-Row, 1749). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
See also The Chace. A Poem. By William Somervile, Esq. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by T. Cooper, 1735). <Link to 3rd ed. of 1735 in ECCO>
Date of Entry
11/30/2005
