"Let then my soul and body be a-kin, / Naked without, as desolate within."
— Bickerstaff, Isaac (b. 1733, d. after 1808)
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for R. and J. Dodsley
Date
1756
Metaphor
"Let then my soul and body be a-kin, /
Naked without, as desolate within."
Metaphor in Context
CLYTIE.
Why was I born, ye Gods, since doom'd to this?
Off, idle ornaments, detested glare
Of gold and jewels, wherefore are ye here?
Why am I dress'd in pompous robes like these?
There's no one now whom I would wish to please.
Let then my soul and body be a-kin,
Naked without, as desolate within.
By various passions am I torn,
Now with anger, now with scorn;
Now with fear my heart's recoiling,
Now with rage my spirit's boiling:
As the diff'rent plagues infest,
To love or vengeance I incline;
Now I could stab his faithless breast,
Now--press him close to mine.
(II.iii, pp. 27-8)
Why was I born, ye Gods, since doom'd to this?
Off, idle ornaments, detested glare
Of gold and jewels, wherefore are ye here?
Why am I dress'd in pompous robes like these?
There's no one now whom I would wish to please.
Let then my soul and body be a-kin,
Naked without, as desolate within.
By various passions am I torn,
Now with anger, now with scorn;
Now with fear my heart's recoiling,
Now with rage my spirit's boiling:
As the diff'rent plagues infest,
To love or vengeance I incline;
Now I could stab his faithless breast,
Now--press him close to mine.
(II.iii, pp. 27-8)
Categories
Provenance
ECCO-TCP
Citation
Never acted. Only 1 entry in ESTC (1756).
Leucöthoe. A Dramatic Poem (London: Printed for R. and J. Dodsley, 1756). <Link to ECCO-TCP>
Leucöthoe. A Dramatic Poem (London: Printed for R. and J. Dodsley, 1756). <Link to ECCO-TCP>
Date of Entry
08/26/2013
