To A Person Who Wrote Ill, And Spake Worse, Against Me

Matthew Prior 1664 – 1721



Lie Philo untouch'd, on my peaceable shelf,
Nor take it amiss that so little I heed thee;
I've no envy to thee, and some love to myself:
Then why should I answer since first I must read thee?
Drunk with Helicon's waters, and double-brew'd bub,
Be a linguist, a poet, a critic, a wag;
To the solid delight of thy well-judging club,
To the damage alone of thy bookseller Brag.
Pursue me with satire; what harm is there in't?
But from all viva voce reflection forbear;
There can be no danger from what thou shalt print,
There may be a little from what thou may'st swear.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

34 sec read
104

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABABCDCDBEFE
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 564
Words 108
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 12

Matthew Prior

Matthew Prior was an English poet and diplomat. more…

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