"Heav'n heaves the heart, and reason rules the head."
— Woodhouse, James (bap. 1735, d. 1820)
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for, and sold by, the author
Date
1788
Metaphor
"Heav'n heaves the heart, and reason rules the head."
Metaphor in Context
As all the passions of the human breast
Impel to action, or compose to rest;
Inflame, or cool, excite, or soothe the soul,
Conspiring to preserve, and guard, the whole;
As will goads on, by pure affections led,
Heav'n heaves the heart, and reason rules the head:
But if rebellion vex each vital part,
The head made dark by demons in the heart,
The will runs riot, while the passions rule,
The soul a slave, and reason quite a tool.
When reason governs, as her Maker meant,
Each subject passion feels its proper bent:
None hurries on to urge injurious strife;
None loiters to relax the springs of life:
None chills with agues, or with fevers fires;
Represses right, or raises wrong desires:
But, firm, in friendship and affiance join'd,
All help true happiness throughout mankind;
While, seeking pleasures, and avoiding pains,
Will whips, or curbs, as reason holds the reins.
Impel to action, or compose to rest;
Inflame, or cool, excite, or soothe the soul,
Conspiring to preserve, and guard, the whole;
As will goads on, by pure affections led,
Heav'n heaves the heart, and reason rules the head:
But if rebellion vex each vital part,
The head made dark by demons in the heart,
The will runs riot, while the passions rule,
The soul a slave, and reason quite a tool.
When reason governs, as her Maker meant,
Each subject passion feels its proper bent:
None hurries on to urge injurious strife;
None loiters to relax the springs of life:
None chills with agues, or with fevers fires;
Represses right, or raises wrong desires:
But, firm, in friendship and affiance join'd,
All help true happiness throughout mankind;
While, seeking pleasures, and avoiding pains,
Will whips, or curbs, as reason holds the reins.
Provenance
Searching "rule" and "reason" in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
Only 1 entry in ESTC (1788).
See James Woodhouse, Poems on Several Occasions, Never Before Published (London : Printed for, and sold by, the author, at No. 10, in Lower Brook-Street, Grosvenor-Square, 1788). <Link to ECCO><Link to Google Books>
Text from The Life and Poetical Works of James Woodhouse, ed. R. I. Woodhouse, 2 vols. (London: The Leadenhall Press, 1896). <Link to Hathi Trust> <Link to LION>
See James Woodhouse, Poems on Several Occasions, Never Before Published (London : Printed for, and sold by, the author, at No. 10, in Lower Brook-Street, Grosvenor-Square, 1788). <Link to ECCO><Link to Google Books>
Text from The Life and Poetical Works of James Woodhouse, ed. R. I. Woodhouse, 2 vols. (London: The Leadenhall Press, 1896). <Link to Hathi Trust> <Link to LION>
Date of Entry
06/22/2004
Date of Review
07/20/2011
