Only to Live

Francis William Bourdillon 1852 (Runcorn) – 1921



Only to live! There nothing is more sweet.
Only to live! There nothing is more bitter.
Only to live, when flowers are at the feet
And overhead the happy swallows twitter.
Only to live! There nothing is more sweet.
Only to live, when flies the angry sleet,
And the head bows above a dead love’s litter.
Only to live! There nothing is more bitter.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

19 sec read
333

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABabAabB
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 348
Words 66
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 8

Francis William Bourdillon

Francis William Bourdillon was a British poet and translator. more…

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    "Only to Live" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/13970/only-to-live>.

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    I wandered lonely as a _______ that floats on high o'er vales and hills
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