"A gleam of joy breaks in on my benighted soul while I reflect that you cannot, will not refuse your protection to the heart-broken."
— Rowson, Susanna (1762-1828)
Author
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for William Lane, at the Minerva
Date
1791, 1794
Metaphor
"A gleam of joy breaks in on my benighted soul while I reflect that you cannot, will not refuse your protection to the heart-broken."
Metaphor in Context
When we left our native land, that dear, happy land which now contains all that is dear to the wretched Charlotte, our prospects were the same; we both, pardon me, Madam, if I say, we both too easily followed the impulse of our treacherous hearts, and trusted our happiness on a tempestuous ocean, where mine has been wrecked and lost for ever; you have been more fortunate -- you are united to a man of honour and humanity, united by the most sacred ties, respected, esteemed, and admired, and surrounded by innumerable blessings of which I am bereaved, enjoying those pleasures which have fled my bosom never to return; alas! sorrow and deep regret have taken their place. Behold me, Madam, a poor forsaken wanderer, who has no where to lay her weary head, wherewith to supply the wants of nature, or to shield her from the inclemency of the weather. To you I sue, to you I look for pity and relief. I ask not to be received as an intimate or an equal; only for charity's sweet sake receive me into your hospitable mansion, allot me the meanest apartment in it, and let me breath out my soul in prayers for your happiness; I cannot, I feel I cannot long bear up under the accumulated woes that pour in upon me; but oh! my dear Madam, for the love of heaven suffer me not to expire in the street; and when I am at peace, as soon I shall be, extend your compassion to my helpless offspring, should it please heaven that it should survive its unhappy mother. A gleam of joy breaks in on my benighted soul while I reflect that you cannot, will not refuse your protection to the heart-broken.
(II.xxx, pp. 95-6; pp. 115-6 in Penguin edition)
(II.xxx, pp. 95-6; pp. 115-6 in Penguin edition)
Categories
Provenance
Reading
Citation
Susanna Rowson, Charlotte: A Tale of Truth (London: Minerva Press, 1791). Republished in America: Charlotte: A Tale of Truth (Philadelphia: M. Carey, 1794). <Link to UVA Special Collections> <Link to UVA E-Text Center>
Text from U.Va. edition. Reading in Charlotte Temple and Lucy Temple, ed. Ann Douglas (New York: Penguin, 1991).
Text from U.Va. edition. Reading in Charlotte Temple and Lucy Temple, ed. Ann Douglas (New York: Penguin, 1991).
Date of Entry
05/29/2013
