Love And Knowledge

Edith Nesbit 1858 (Kennington, Surrey ) – 1924 (New Romney, Kent)



THOUGH you and I so long have been so near--
Have felt each other's heart-beats hour by hour,
Have watered, plucked, and trampled passion's flower,
Have known so many days so very dear--
Yet still through every hour of every year
We have sought to win and failed to win the dower
Of perfect insight, and to gain the power
To see what we are, and not what we appear.

Yet you desire such knowledge--would possess,
You say, completion of love; if that were won
--Ah! by it might not haply be undone
The little measure of joy we knew before?
Though we should swear we loved each other more,
How surely we should love each other less!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 16, 2023

36 sec read
77

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBAAXBA CDDEEC
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 637
Words 120
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 6

Edith Nesbit

Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland) was an English author and poet; she published her books for children under the name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 books of children's literature. She was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, a socialist organisation later affiliated to the Labour Party. more…

All Edith Nesbit poems | Edith Nesbit Books

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