The "light of reason's ray" may be extinguished
— Ruffhead, James
Author
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for the Author
Date
1746
Metaphor
The "light of reason's ray" may be extinguished
Metaphor in Context
Insidious man -- to envy ever prone,
Lives passive -- in a vicious state alone,
Unmov'd, unfeeling, views his brother's pain,
And unconcern'd-hears suffering worth complain,
From bold presumption all his reason draws,
Yet thinks he comprehends all nature's laws.
Enraptur'd-with glitt'ring state of things,
Makes saints of hypocrites-and Gods of Kings;
Extinguishes the light of reason's ray,
And rakes the spirits of his soul away.
The worst of tyrants o'er himself erects,
And sees all others - but his own defects;
Erects ambition, avarice! thy twin,
Source of dicord, enmity and din,
Wou'd, rather than not gain its ardent end,
The beft of empires- in confusion rend,
Reverse the fixt, the vast decrees of fate,
And sink in native anarchy the state;
Make on each element eternal wars,
Pull down the sun - and quench the fiery stars.
So in its flames the Phoenix fans the fire,
Till its own passions in flames expire.
(pp. 2-3, in. 49-50)
Lives passive -- in a vicious state alone,
Unmov'd, unfeeling, views his brother's pain,
And unconcern'd-hears suffering worth complain,
From bold presumption all his reason draws,
Yet thinks he comprehends all nature's laws.
Enraptur'd-with glitt'ring state of things,
Makes saints of hypocrites-and Gods of Kings;
Extinguishes the light of reason's ray,
And rakes the spirits of his soul away.
The worst of tyrants o'er himself erects,
And sees all others - but his own defects;
Erects ambition, avarice! thy twin,
Source of dicord, enmity and din,
Wou'd, rather than not gain its ardent end,
The beft of empires- in confusion rend,
Reverse the fixt, the vast decrees of fate,
And sink in native anarchy the state;
Make on each element eternal wars,
Pull down the sun - and quench the fiery stars.
So in its flames the Phoenix fans the fire,
Till its own passions in flames expire.
(pp. 2-3, in. 49-50)
Categories
Provenance
Gale's Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO).
Citation
At least 2 entries in ECCO and ESTC (1746, 1747).
James Ruffhead, The Passions of Man. A Poem. In Four Epistles (London: Printed for the Author, 1746). <Link to ECCO>
James Ruffhead, The Passions of Man. A Poem. In Four Epistles (London: Printed for the Author, 1746). <Link to ECCO>
Date of Entry
01/06/2004
