"And these young ruffians in the soul will sow / Seeds of all vices that on weakness grow."
— Crabbe, George (1754-1832)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
J. Hatchard
Date
1810
Metaphor
"And these young ruffians in the soul will sow / Seeds of all vices that on weakness grow."
Metaphor in Context
Verres could do that mischief in a day,
For which not Rome, in all its power, could pay;
And these boy-tyrants will their slaves distress,
And do the wrongs no master can redress:
The mind they load with fear: it feels disdain
For its own baseness; yet it tries in vain
To shake th' admitted power;--the coward comes again:
'T is more than present pain these tyrants give,
Long as we've life some strong impressions live;
And these young ruffians in the soul will sow
Seeds of all vices that on weakness grow.
For which not Rome, in all its power, could pay;
And these boy-tyrants will their slaves distress,
And do the wrongs no master can redress:
The mind they load with fear: it feels disdain
For its own baseness; yet it tries in vain
To shake th' admitted power;--the coward comes again:
'T is more than present pain these tyrants give,
Long as we've life some strong impressions live;
And these young ruffians in the soul will sow
Seeds of all vices that on weakness grow.
Categories
Provenance
Searching in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
George Crabbe, The Borough, 2nd ed. rev. (London: J. Hatchard, 1810). <Link to Google Books>
Date of Entry
05/17/2005
