"Attend all ye Fair, and I'll tell ye the Art / To bind every Fancy with ease in your Chains, / To hold in soft Fetters the conjugal Heart, / And banish from Hymen his Doubts and his Pains."
— Murphy, Arthur (1727-1805)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for P. Valliant
Date
1760
Metaphor
"Attend all ye Fair, and I'll tell ye the Art / To bind every Fancy with ease in your Chains, / To hold in soft Fetters the conjugal Heart, / And banish from Hymen his Doubts and his Pains."
Metaphor in Context
MRS. BELL
No, as I live and breathe, I don't;--and do you know that I can sing it already?--Come, you shall hear me,--you shall hear it.
[sings]
I.
Attend all ye Fair, and I'll tell ye the Art
To bind every Fancy with ease in your Chains,
To hold in soft Fetters the conjugal Heart,
And banish from Hymen his Doubts and his Pains.
II.
When Juno accepted the Cestus of Love,
At first she was handsome; she charming became;
With Skill the soft Passions it taught her to move,
To kindle at once, and to keep up the Flame.
III.
'Tis this gives the Eyes all their Magic and Fire;
The Voice melting Accents; impassions the Kiss;
Confers the sweet Smiles that awaken Desire,
And plants round the Fair each Incentive to Bliss.
IV.
Thence flows the gay Chat, more than Reason that charms;
The eloquent Blush, that can Beauty improve;
The fond Sigh, the fond Vow, the soft Touch that alarms,
The tender Disdain, the Renewal of Love.
V.
Ye Fair take the Cestus, and practise its Art;
The Mind unaccomplish'd, mere Features are vain,
Exert your sweet Power, you conquer each Heart,
And the Loves, Joys and Graces, shall walk in your Train.
No, as I live and breathe, I don't;--and do you know that I can sing it already?--Come, you shall hear me,--you shall hear it.
[sings]
I.
Attend all ye Fair, and I'll tell ye the Art
To bind every Fancy with ease in your Chains,
To hold in soft Fetters the conjugal Heart,
And banish from Hymen his Doubts and his Pains.
II.
When Juno accepted the Cestus of Love,
At first she was handsome; she charming became;
With Skill the soft Passions it taught her to move,
To kindle at once, and to keep up the Flame.
III.
'Tis this gives the Eyes all their Magic and Fire;
The Voice melting Accents; impassions the Kiss;
Confers the sweet Smiles that awaken Desire,
And plants round the Fair each Incentive to Bliss.
IV.
Thence flows the gay Chat, more than Reason that charms;
The eloquent Blush, that can Beauty improve;
The fond Sigh, the fond Vow, the soft Touch that alarms,
The tender Disdain, the Renewal of Love.
V.
Ye Fair take the Cestus, and practise its Art;
The Mind unaccomplish'd, mere Features are vain,
Exert your sweet Power, you conquer each Heart,
And the Loves, Joys and Graces, shall walk in your Train.
Categories
Provenance
Searching "heart" and "chain" in HDIS (Drama); found again "fancy"
Citation
Arthur Murphy, The Way to Keep Him, a Comedy in Three Acts: As it is perform'd at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane (London: printed for P. Valliant, 1760). <Link to Dublin edition in Google Books>
Date of Entry
07/29/2011
