"Reason, collected in herself, disdains / The slavish yoke of arbitrary chains"
— Churchill, Charles (1731-1764)
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for the Author
Date
1760, 1761
Metaphor
"Reason, collected in herself, disdains / The slavish yoke of arbitrary chains"
Metaphor in Context
Go on, ye fools, who talk for talking's sake,
Without distinguishing, distinctions make;
Shine forth in native folly, native pride,
Make yourselves rules to all the world beside;
Reason, collected in herself, disdains
The slavish yoke of arbitrary chains;
Steady and true each circumstance she weighs,
Nor to bare words inglorious tribute pays.
Men of sense live exempt from vulgar awe,
And Reason to herself alone is law:
That freedom she enjoys with liberal mind,
Which she as freely grants to all mankind.
No idol-titled name her reverence stirs,
No hour she blindly to the rest prefers;
All are alike, if they're alike employ'd,
And all are good if virtuously enjoy'd
Without distinguishing, distinctions make;
Shine forth in native folly, native pride,
Make yourselves rules to all the world beside;
Reason, collected in herself, disdains
The slavish yoke of arbitrary chains;
Steady and true each circumstance she weighs,
Nor to bare words inglorious tribute pays.
Men of sense live exempt from vulgar awe,
And Reason to herself alone is law:
That freedom she enjoys with liberal mind,
Which she as freely grants to all mankind.
No idol-titled name her reverence stirs,
No hour she blindly to the rest prefers;
All are alike, if they're alike employ'd,
And all are good if virtuously enjoy'd
Provenance
Searching "rule" and "reason" in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
At least 4 entries in ESTC (1760, 1761, 1763).
See Night, an Epistle to Robert Lloyd. By C. Churchill. (London: Printed for the author; and sold by W. Flexney, near Gray's-Inn Gate, Holborn, 1761). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO-TCP>
See Night, an Epistle to Robert Lloyd. By C. Churchill. (London: Printed for the author; and sold by W. Flexney, near Gray's-Inn Gate, Holborn, 1761). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO-TCP>
Date of Entry
06/15/2004
Date of Review
05/23/2011
