Take not the Gods to task, for they are wise

Alfred Austin 1835 (Leeds) – 1913 (Ashford)



Take not the Gods to task, for they are wise
When they refuse no less than when they grant.
Thou canst but know, with all thy bursting sighs,
What is thy whim, but never what thy want.
Did they, to smite thine importunity,
Answer each swift unregulated prayer,
Oh, what accursèd trudger woulds thou be,
And what a world of fardels have to bear!
Check thy lament. The days will surely come,
Thou wilt regard each crossed or shattered hope,
As now thou dost poor Philip's broken drum,
Or little Rosie's tangled skipping-rope.
Confide in Time, who will, as years expire,
Indulge, or else annihilate, desire.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

33 sec read
178

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABACBDEDFGFGHI
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 600
Words 108
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

Alfred Austin

Alfred Austin DL was an English poet who was appointed Poet Laureate in 1896 upon the death of Alfred, Lord Tennyson. more…

All Alfred Austin poems | Alfred Austin Books

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    "Take not the Gods to task, for they are wise" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/797/take-not-the-gods-to-task,-for-they-are-wise>.

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