Sursum Corda

Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803 (Boston) – 1882 (Concord)



Seek not the Spirit, if it hide,
Inexorable to thy zeal:
Baby, do not whine and chide;
Art thou not also real?
Why should'st thou stoop to poor excuse?
Turn on the Accuser roundly; say,
"Here am I, here will I remain
Forever to myself soothfast,
Go thou, sweet Heaven, or, at thy pleasure stay."—
Already Heaven with thee its lot has cast,
For it only can absolutely deal.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 30, 2023

21 sec read
446

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDEADFB
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 372
Words 72
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 11

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. more…

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    "Sursum Corda" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/29854/sursum-corda>.

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