Valentine

Elinor Morton Wylie 1885 (Somerville, New Jersey) – 1928 (New York City, New York)



Too high, too high to pluck
My heart shall swing.
A fruit no bee shall suck,
No wasp shall sting.

If on some night of cold
It falls to ground
In apple-leaves of gold
I'll wrap it round.

And I shall seal it up
With spice and salt,
In a carven silver cup,
In a deep vault.

Before my eyes are blind
And my lips mute,
I must eat core and rind
Of that same fruit.

Before my heart is dust
By the end of all,
Eat it I must, I must
Were it bitter gall.

But I shall keep it sweet
By some strange art;
Wild honey I shall eat
When I eat my heart.

O honey cool and chaste
As clover's breath!
Sweet Heaven I shall taste
Before my death.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 14, 2023

40 sec read
215

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ KLKL MNMN
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 625
Words 134
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

Elinor Morton Wylie

Elinor Morton Wylie was an American poet and novelist popular in the 1920s and 1930s. "She was famous during her life almost as much for her ethereal beauty and personality as for her melodious, sensuous poetry." more…

All Elinor Morton Wylie poems | Elinor Morton Wylie Books

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    "Valentine" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/10186/valentine>.

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    Which of these famous poems is written in villanelle form?
    A Funeral Blues
    B Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
    C The Owl And The Pussycat
    D Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening