Death the Great Leveller
John O. Andersen
A poem by the great English poet and dramatist James Shirley (1596-1666).
The 17th century was a particularly bloody one in Europe. The English Civil
Wars took place between 1642 and 1651. In Central Europe, the Thirty Years
War took place from 1618-1648. Surely the poets and playwrights of that era
pondered deeply the questions of existence, the transitory nature of wealth,
and power, of life itself. The following poem touches on those themes:
Death the Leveller
THE glories of our blood and state
Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armour against Fate;
Death lays his icy hand on kings:
Sceptre and Crown 5
Must tumble down,
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crook�d scythe and spade.
Some men with swords may reap the field,
And plant fresh laurels where they kill: 10
But their strong nerves at last must yield;
They tame but one another still:
Early or late
They stoop to fate,
And must give up their murmuring breath 15
When they, pale captives, creep to death.
The garlands wither on your brow,
Then boast no more your mighty deeds!
Upon Death's purple altar now
See where the victor-victim bleeds. 20
Your heads must come
To the cold tomb:
Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in their dust.
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Quiller-Couch, Arthur, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse
BARTLEBYVERSE: American & English Poetry: 1250-1920, Vol. I
John
http://members.xoom.com/joandersen
Usually it's easier to be a "success" than to be a human.
The 17th century was a particularly bloody one in Europe. The English Civil
Wars took place between 1642 and 1651. In Central Europe, the Thirty Years
War took place from 1618-1648. Surely the poets and playwrights of that era
pondered deeply the questions of existence, the transitory nature of wealth,
and power, of life itself. The following poem touches on those themes:
Death the Leveller
THE glories of our blood and state
Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armour against Fate;
Death lays his icy hand on kings:
Sceptre and Crown 5
Must tumble down,
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crook�d scythe and spade.
Some men with swords may reap the field,
And plant fresh laurels where they kill: 10
But their strong nerves at last must yield;
They tame but one another still:
Early or late
They stoop to fate,
And must give up their murmuring breath 15
When they, pale captives, creep to death.
The garlands wither on your brow,
Then boast no more your mighty deeds!
Upon Death's purple altar now
See where the victor-victim bleeds. 20
Your heads must come
To the cold tomb:
Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in their dust.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Quiller-Couch, Arthur, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse
BARTLEBYVERSE: American & English Poetry: 1250-1920, Vol. I
John
http://members.xoom.com/joandersen
Usually it's easier to be a "success" than to be a human.