Pater Filio

Robert Seymour Bridges 1844 (Walmer, Kent) – 1930 (Boars Hill, Berkshire)



Sense with keenest edge unusèd,
Yet unsteel'd by scathing fire;
Lovely feet as yet unbruisèd
On the ways of dark desire;
Sweetest hope that lookest smiling
O'er the wilderness defiling!

Why such beauty, to be blighted
By the swarm of foul destruction?
Why such innocence delighted,
When sin stalks to thy seduction?
All the litanies e'er chaunted
Shall not keep thy faith undaunted.

I have pray'd the sainted Morning
To unclasp her hands to hold thee;
From resignful Eve's adorning
Stol'n a robe of peace to enfold thee;
With all charms of man's contriving
Arm'd thee for thy lonely striving.

Me too once unthinking Nature,
—Whence Love's timeless mockery took me,—
Fashion'd so divine a creature,
Yea, and like a beast forsook me.
I forgave, but tell the measure
Of her crime in thee, my treasure.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

44 sec read
33

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCC DEXEAD CACACC BABABB
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 811
Words 139
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6, 6

Robert Seymour Bridges

Robert Seymour Bridges was Poet Laureate from 1913 to 1930. A doctor by training, he achieved literary fame only late in life. His poems reflect a deep Christian faith, and he is the author of many well-known hymns. It was through Bridges’ efforts that Gerard Manley Hopkins achieved posthumous fame. more…

All Robert Seymour Bridges poems | Robert Seymour Bridges Books

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