"Of one, who, warm with human passions, soft / To tenderest impressions, frequent rush'd / Precipitate into the tangling maze"
— Dodd, William (1729-1777)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for C. Dilly, in the Poultry
Date
1777, 1793
Metaphor
"Of one, who, warm with human passions, soft / To tenderest impressions, frequent rush'd / Precipitate into the tangling maze"
Metaphor in Context
Then farewell, oh, my friends! light o'er my grave
The green sod lay, and dew it with the tear
Of memory affectionate! and you
--The curtain dropt decisive, oh my foes,
Your rancour drop; and, candid, as I am
Speak of me, hapless! Then you'll speak of one
Whose bosom beat at pity's gentlest touch
From earliest infancy: whose boyish mind
In acts humane and tender ever joy'd;
And who,--that temper by his inmost sense
Approv'd and cultivate with constant care,--
Melted thro' life at Sorrow's plaintive tale;
And urg'd, compassionate with pleasure ran
To soothe the sufferer and relieve the woe!
Of one, who, though to humble fortune bred,
With splendid generosity's bright form
Too ardently enamour'd, turn'd his sight,
Deluded, from frugality's just care,
And parsimony needful! One who scorn'd
Mean love of gold, yet to that power,--his scorn
Retorting vengeful,--a mark'd victim fell!
Of one, who, unsuspecting, and ill-form'd
For the world's subtleties, his bare breast bore
Unguarded, open; and ingenuous, thought
All men ingenuous, frank and open too!
Of one, who, warm with human passions, soft
To tenderest impressions, frequent rush'd
Precipitate into the tangling maze
Of error;--instant to each fault alive
Who, in his little journey through the world--
Misled, deluded oft, mistook his way;
Met with bad roads and robbers, for his steps
Insidious lurking: and, by cunning craft
Of fellow-travellers sometimes deceiv'd,
Severely felt of cruelty and scorn,
Of envy, malice, and of ill report[1],
The heavy hand oppressive! One who brought
--From ignorance, from indiscretion blind,--
Ills numerous on his head; but never aim'd,
Nor wish'd an ill or injury to man!
Injur'd, with cheerful readiness forgave;
Nor for a moment in his happy heart
Harbour'd of malice or revenge a thought:
Still glad and blest to avenge his foes despite
By deeds of love benevolent!--Of one--
Oh painful contradiction, who in God,
In duty, plac'd the summit of his joy;
Yet left that God, that blissful duty left,
Preposterous, vile deserter! and receiv'd
A just return--"Desertion from his God,
"And consequential plunge into the depth
"Of all his present--of all human woe!"
The green sod lay, and dew it with the tear
Of memory affectionate! and you
--The curtain dropt decisive, oh my foes,
Your rancour drop; and, candid, as I am
Speak of me, hapless! Then you'll speak of one
Whose bosom beat at pity's gentlest touch
From earliest infancy: whose boyish mind
In acts humane and tender ever joy'd;
And who,--that temper by his inmost sense
Approv'd and cultivate with constant care,--
Melted thro' life at Sorrow's plaintive tale;
And urg'd, compassionate with pleasure ran
To soothe the sufferer and relieve the woe!
Of one, who, though to humble fortune bred,
With splendid generosity's bright form
Too ardently enamour'd, turn'd his sight,
Deluded, from frugality's just care,
And parsimony needful! One who scorn'd
Mean love of gold, yet to that power,--his scorn
Retorting vengeful,--a mark'd victim fell!
Of one, who, unsuspecting, and ill-form'd
For the world's subtleties, his bare breast bore
Unguarded, open; and ingenuous, thought
All men ingenuous, frank and open too!
Of one, who, warm with human passions, soft
To tenderest impressions, frequent rush'd
Precipitate into the tangling maze
Of error;--instant to each fault alive
Who, in his little journey through the world--
Misled, deluded oft, mistook his way;
Met with bad roads and robbers, for his steps
Insidious lurking: and, by cunning craft
Of fellow-travellers sometimes deceiv'd,
Severely felt of cruelty and scorn,
Of envy, malice, and of ill report[1],
The heavy hand oppressive! One who brought
--From ignorance, from indiscretion blind,--
Ills numerous on his head; but never aim'd,
Nor wish'd an ill or injury to man!
Injur'd, with cheerful readiness forgave;
Nor for a moment in his happy heart
Harbour'd of malice or revenge a thought:
Still glad and blest to avenge his foes despite
By deeds of love benevolent!--Of one--
Oh painful contradiction, who in God,
In duty, plac'd the summit of his joy;
Yet left that God, that blissful duty left,
Preposterous, vile deserter! and receiv'd
A just return--"Desertion from his God,
"And consequential plunge into the depth
"Of all his present--of all human woe!"
Categories
Provenance
Searching "passion" and "impression" in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
10 entries in ESTC (1777, 1778, 1781, 1783, 1789, 1793, 1794, 1795, 1796).
Text from Thoughts in Prison, in Five Parts, viz. The Imprisonment--The Retrospect--Public Punishment--The Trial--Futurity; By the Rev. William Dodd. To which are added, His Last Prayer, Written in the Night before his Death; The Convict's Address to his Unhappy Brethren; and Other Miscellaneous Pieces: With an Account of the Author, and a List of his Works, 4th ed. (London: Printed for C. Dilly, in the Poultry, 1793). <Link to ESTC>
Compare Thoughts in Prison: In Five Parts. Viz. the Imprisonment. The Retrospect. Publick Punishment. The Trial. Futurity. By the Rev. William Dodd, LLD. To Which Are Added, His Last Prayer, Written in the Night Before His Death: and Other Miscellaneous Pieces. (London: Printed for Edward and Charles Dilly, in the Poultry; and G. Kearsly, at No 46, in Fleet-Street, 1777). <Link to ESTC>
Text from Thoughts in Prison, in Five Parts, viz. The Imprisonment--The Retrospect--Public Punishment--The Trial--Futurity; By the Rev. William Dodd. To which are added, His Last Prayer, Written in the Night before his Death; The Convict's Address to his Unhappy Brethren; and Other Miscellaneous Pieces: With an Account of the Author, and a List of his Works, 4th ed. (London: Printed for C. Dilly, in the Poultry, 1793). <Link to ESTC>
Compare Thoughts in Prison: In Five Parts. Viz. the Imprisonment. The Retrospect. Publick Punishment. The Trial. Futurity. By the Rev. William Dodd, LLD. To Which Are Added, His Last Prayer, Written in the Night Before His Death: and Other Miscellaneous Pieces. (London: Printed for Edward and Charles Dilly, in the Poultry; and G. Kearsly, at No 46, in Fleet-Street, 1777). <Link to ESTC>
Date of Entry
05/20/2005
