To M

George Gordon Lord Byron 1788 (London) – 1824 (Missolonghi, Aetolia)



Oh! did those eyes, instead of fire,
   With bright, but mild affection shine:
Though they might kindle less desire,
   Love, more than mortal, would be thine.

For thou art form'd so heavenly fair,
   Howe'er those orbs may wildly beam,
We must admire, but still despair;
   That fatal glance forbids esteem.

When Nature stamp'd thy beauteous birth,
   So much perfection in thee shone,
She fear'd that, too divine for earth,
   The skies might claim thee for their own.

Therefore, to guard her dearest work,
   Lest angels might dispute the prize,
She bade a secret lightning lurk,
   Within those once celestial eyes.

These might the boldest Sylph appall,
   When gleaming with meridian blaze;
Thy beauty must enrapture all;
   But who can dare thine ardent gaze?

'Tis said that Berenice's hair,
   In stars adorns the vault of heaven;
But they would ne'er permit thee there,
   Who wouldst so far outshine the seven.

For did those eyes as planets roll,
   Thy sister-lights would scarce appear:
E'en suns, which systems now control,
   Would twinkle dimly through their sphere.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 14, 2023

54 sec read
78

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ CKCK LMLM
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,061
Words 175
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

George Gordon Lord Byron

George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, known simply as Lord Byron, was an English poet, peer and politician who became a revolutionary in the Greek War of Independence, and is considered one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement. He is regarded as one of the greatest English poets and remains widely read and influential. Among his best-known works are the lengthy narrative poems Don Juan and Childe Harold's Pilgrimage; many of his shorter lyrics in Hebrew Melodies also became popular. He travelled extensively across Europe, especially in Italy, where he lived for seven years in the cities of Venice, Ravenna, and Pisa. During his stay in Italy he frequently visited his friend and fellow poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Later in life Byron joined the Greek War of Independence fighting the Ottoman Empire and died of disease leading a campaign during that war, for which Greeks revere him as a national hero. He died in 1824 at the age of 36 from a fever contracted after the First and Second Siege of Missolonghi. His only legitimate child, Ada Lovelace, is regarded as a foundational figure in the field of computer programming based on her notes for Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine. Byron's illegitimate children include Allegra Byron, who died in childhood, and possibly Elizabeth Medora Leigh.  more…

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