The Battle of Life

Charles Harpur 1813 (Windsor) – 1868 (Australia)



Never give up, though life be a battle
Wherein true men may fail, and true causes be sold;
       Yet, on the whole, however may rattle
       The thunders of chance, scaring cowards like cattle—
Clear victory’s always the bride of the bold.
       Armed in your right-though friendship deny you,
And love fall away when the storm’s at the worst,
       Count not your loss, Was destined to try you—
       Bear the brunt like a man, and your deeds shall ally you
To natures more noble and true than the first.

       Rail not at Fate: if rightly you scan her,
There’s none loves more strongly the heart that endures:
       On, in the hero’s calm resolute manner,
       Still bear aloft your hope’s long-trusted banner,
And the day, if you do but live through it, is yours.

       Be this your faith; and if killing strokes clatter
On your harness where true men before you have died,
       Fight on, let your life-blood be poured out like water—
       Fight on, make at least a brave end of the matter,
Brave end of the struggle if nothing beside

 

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

54 sec read
118

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABAABCDCCD EFEEF EGEEG
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 1,076
Words 182
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 10, 5, 5

Charles Harpur

Charles Harpur was an Australian poet. more…

All Charles Harpur poems | Charles Harpur Books

0 fans

Discuss the poem The Battle of Life with the community...

0 Comments

    Translation

    Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Battle of Life" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/5178/the-battle-of-life>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    13
    hours
    35
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the _______
    A difference
    B change
    C sense
    D choice