This 1788 (public domain) poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (with his famous line about hope) goes out to friend Jan, whose poem-comment hails the sun and placed stars over the poet's head.
Where there are sun and stars, the moon should be near....
Sonnet
To the Autumnal Moon
Mild Splendour of the various-vested Night!
Mother of wildly-working visions! hail!
I watch thy gliding, while with watery light
Thy weak eye glimmers through a fleecy veil;
And when thou lovest thy pale orb to shroud
Behind the gathered blackness lost on high;
And when thou dartest from the wind-rent cloud
Thy placid light'ning o'er the awaken'd sky.
Ah such is Hope! as changeful and as fair!
Now dimly peering on the wistful sight;
Now hid behind the dragon-wing'd Despair:
But soon emerging in her radiant might
She o'er the sorrow-clouded breast of Care
Sails, like a meteor kindling in its flight.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
1788
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Comments: 14
Sweet vintage poetry will still delight
Long after the moon is lost in sight
What a lovely caption for your autumn full moon
With reverie I bow and swoon
in the midnight hour
reveling in its mystery
awed by its might
darkness flees pierced
by a silvery thread
weaving my heart
lifting its dread.
John I am attemting poetry again, check me out and be critical. Thank you
Lea, you're doing like Jan, writing wonderful poems for comments. I'll go look at others, but this one is perfect.
Gerry, I think he just uses contractions to stay with his rhythm. For us, of course, spelling out "lightening" would have avoided the momentary thought of lightning. And for these periods this is entertainment, television, movies--this along with music made at home. And they were tenderer souls, unrushed, hit hard by nature surely, but hugely real to each other. And the poet was almost singing the lines back then -- that's my imagination anyway.
With some of the old poetry I find it helpful to read it really slowly, word by word. I really disliked Emerson's poetry until I did that, and suddenly they blossomed. This, I think, reads well very slowly, too, and as if one is sending up a picture into the listening space every few words...
I agree with you about reading slowly. I sensed that when I read it the first time and the second and third. It wants to be visualized and be heard.
Lea, I'm glad you find the slower reading helpful. I only discovered it because I know Emerson is deep and sincere, no sing-songer no way, so I had to find how to experience him in his poetry.
Mandi, thank you -- yes, great bright moon last night, clouds here tonight.
I removed them both from the other poem, your suggestion helped I believe.