"The soul [is] a slave, and reason quite a tool."
— Woodhouse, James (bap. 1735, d. 1820)
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for, and sold by, the author
Date
1788
Metaphor
"The soul [is] a slave, and reason quite a tool."
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.
Categories
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
