The House of Life: 72. The Choice, II

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



Watch thou and fear; to-morrow thou shalt die.
        Or art thou sure thou shalt have time for death?
        Is not the day which God's word promiseth
    To come man knows not when? In yonder sky
    Now while we speak, the sun speeds forth: can I
        Or thou assure him of his goal? God's breath
        Even at this moment haply quickeneth
    The air to a flame; till spirits, always nigh

    Though screen'd and hid, shall walk the daylight here.
      And dost thou prate of all that man shall do?
          Canst thou, who hast but plagues, presume to be
          Glad in his gladness that comes after thee?
      Will his strength slay thy worm in Hell? Go to:
  Cover thy countenance, and watch, and fear.

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

38 sec read
79

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBAABBA XCDDCX
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 717
Words 124
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

1 fan

Discuss the poem The House of Life: 72. The Choice, II with the community...

0 Comments

    Translation

    Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The House of Life: 72. The Choice, II" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/7737/the-house-of-life:-72.-the-choice,-ii>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    11
    hours
    49
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the 1916 poem "Out, Out—"?
    A Elinor Frost
    B Robert Browning
    C Emily Dickinson
    D Robert Frost