From The House Of Life The Sonnet

Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1828 (London) – 1882 (Birchington-on-Sea)



A Sonnet is a moment's monument,
        Memorial from the Soul's eternity
        To one dead deathless hour. Look that it be,
    Whether for lustral rite or dire portent,
    Of its own arduous fulness reverent:
        Carve it in ivory or in ebony,
        As Day or Night may rule; and let Time see
    Its flowering crest impearl'd and orient.

    A Sonnet is a coin: its face reveals
      The soul,--its converse, to what Power 'tis due: --
  Whether for tribute to the august appeals
      Of Life, or dower in Love's high retinue,
  It serve; or, 'mid the dark wharf's cavernous breath,
  In Charon's palm it pay the toll to Death.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 20, 2023

34 sec read
127

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBCABBC DEDEFF
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 637
Words 109
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 6

Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Dante Gabriel Rossetti was an English poet, illustrator, painter and translator. more…

All Dante Gabriel Rossetti poems | Dante Gabriel Rossetti Books

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    "From The House Of Life The Sonnet" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/7544/from-the-house-of-life-the-sonnet>.

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