Sonnet XXIV: Let the World's Sharpness

Elizabeth Barrett Browning 1806 (Kelloe) – 1861 (Florence)



Let the world's sharpness like a clasping knife
Shut in upon itself and do no harm
In this close hand of Love, now soft and warm,
And let us hear no sound of human strife
After the click of the shutting. Life to life -
I lean upon thee, Dear, without alarm,
And feel as safe as guarded by a charm
Against the stab of worldlings, who if rife
Are weak to injure. Very whitely still
The lilies of our lives may reassure
Their blossoms from their roots, accessible
Alone to heavenly dews that drop not fewer;
Growing straight, out of man's reach, on the hill.
God only, who made us rich, can make us poor.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 02, 2023

36 sec read
108

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCAABBADEFGDH
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 596
Words 118
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Elizabeth Barrett Browning was one of the most prominent English poets of the Victorian era. more…

All Elizabeth Barrett Browning poems | Elizabeth Barrett Browning Books

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