"See there the ruins of the noble mind, / When from calm reason passion tears the sway."
— Thomson, James (1700-1748)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for A. Millar
Date
1730
Metaphor
"See there the ruins of the noble mind, / When from calm reason passion tears the sway."
Metaphor in Context
LAELIUS
See there the ruins of the noble mind,
When from calm reason passion tears the sway.
What pity she should perish!—Cruel war,
'Tis not the least misfortune in thy train,
That oft by thee the brave destroy the brave.
She had a Roman soul; for every one
Who loves, like her, his country is a Roman.
Whether on Afric's sandy plains he glows,
Or lives untam'd among Ripbœan snows;
If parent-liberty the breast inflame,
The gloomy Libyan then deserves that name:
And, warm with freedom, under frozen skies,
In farthest Britain Romans yet may rise.
(V.ix)
See there the ruins of the noble mind,
When from calm reason passion tears the sway.
What pity she should perish!—Cruel war,
'Tis not the least misfortune in thy train,
That oft by thee the brave destroy the brave.
She had a Roman soul; for every one
Who loves, like her, his country is a Roman.
Whether on Afric's sandy plains he glows,
Or lives untam'd among Ripbœan snows;
If parent-liberty the breast inflame,
The gloomy Libyan then deserves that name:
And, warm with freedom, under frozen skies,
In farthest Britain Romans yet may rise.
(V.ix)
Provenance
Searching at UVA Library
Citation
At least 22 entries in the ESTC (1730, 1735, 1736, 1738, 1744, ).
See James Thomas. The Tragedy of Sophonisba. London: Printed for A. Millar, 1730. <Link to UVA Library>
See James Thomas. The Tragedy of Sophonisba. London: Printed for A. Millar, 1730. <Link to UVA Library>
Theme
Ruling Passion
Date of Entry
06/16/2010
