The Offer

Charles Lamb 1775 (Inner Temple, London) – 1834 (Edmonton, London)



'Tell me, would you rather be
Changed by a fairy to the fine
Young orphan heiress Geraldine,
Or still be Emily?

'Consider, ere you answer me,
How many blessings are procured
By riches, and how much endured
By chilling poverty.'

After a pause, said Emily:
'In the words orphan heiress I
Find many a solid reason why
I would not changëd be.

'What though I live in poverty,
And have of sisters eight-so many,
That few indulgencies, if any,
Fall to the share of me:

'Think you that for wealth I'd be
Of even the least of them bereft,
Or lose my parent, and be left
An orphaned Emily?

'Still should I be Emily,
Although I looked like Geraldine;
I feel within this heart of mine
No change could workëd be.'

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

40 sec read
97

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCA ADDA AEEA AAAA AFFA ACBA
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 687
Words 135
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

Charles Lamb

Charles Lamb was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his Essays of Elia and for the children's book Tales from Shakespeare, co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764–1847). Friends with such literary luminaries as Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Robert Southey, William Wordsworth, and William Hazlitt, Lamb was at the centre of a major literary circle in England. He has been referred to by E. V. Lucas, his principal biographer, as "the most lovable figure in English literature". more…

All Charles Lamb poems | Charles Lamb Books

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