Pereunt Et Imputantur

Sir Henry Newbolt 1862 (Bilston, Staffordshire) – 1938 (Kensington, London)



(After Martial)

Bernard, if to you and me
Fortune all at once should give
Years to spend secure and free,
With the choice of how to live,
Tell me, what should we proclaim
Life deserving of the name?

Winning some one else's case?
Saving some one else's seat?
Hearing with a solemn face
People of importance bleat?
No, I think we should not still
Waste our time at others' will.

Summer noons beneath the limes,
Summer rides at evening cool,
Winter's tales and home-made rhymes,
Figures on the frozen pool---
These would we for labours take,
And of these our business make.

Ah! but neither you nor I
Dare in earnest venture so;
Still we let the good days die
And to swell the reckoning go.
What are those that know the way,
Yet to walk therein delay?

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

42 sec read
117

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXAXBB CDCDEE FGFGHH IJIJKK
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 731
Words 140
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6, 6

Sir Henry Newbolt

Sir Henry John Newbolt, CH was an English poet, novelist and historian. He also had a very powerful role as a government adviser, particularly on Irish issues and with regard to the study of English in England. He is perhaps best remembered for his poems "Vitaï Lampada" and "Drake's Drum". more…

All Sir Henry Newbolt poems | Sir Henry Newbolt Books

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    Which of these famous poems is written in villanelle form?
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    B Funeral Blues
    C Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
    D Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening