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Song I


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Song I


1

1 'Midst beauty and pleasure's gay triumphs, to languish
2 And droop without knowing the source of my anguish;
3 To start from short slumbers and look for the morning—
4 Yet close my dull eyes when I see it returning;

2

5 Sighs sudden and frequent, looks ever dejected,
6 Sounds that steal from my tongue, by no meaning connected!
7 Ah say, fellow-swains, how these symptoms befell me?
8 They smile, but reply not. Sure Delia will tell me!

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0 Song I

Metrical notation:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/ -+|--+|--+|--+|-/ -+|--+|--+|--+|-/ -+|--+|--+|--+|-/
Metrical foot type:  anapaestic (--+)
Metrical foot number:  tetrameter (4 feet) (catalectic) (hypercatalectic)
Rhyme scheme:  aabb
Rhyme (stanza position):  pair (aabb)
Syllable pattern:  12.12.12.12
Stanza:  quatrain (4 lines)

Notation symbols: | (foot boundary), || (caesura), / (metrical line boundary), + (metrically prominent), - (metrically non-prominent)


1

1 'Midst beauty and pleasure's gay triumphs, to languish    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  languish   |   Rhyme sound:  /æŋgwɪʃ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  assonance (phonological): beauty/to /uː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): and/languish /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): 'Midst/triumphs /m/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): beauty/triumphs /t/
Figure:  aphaeresis (morphological): 'Midst

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2 And droop without knowing the source of my anguish;    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  anguish   |   Rhyme sound:  /æŋgwɪʃ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  assonance (phonological): And/anguish /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): knowing/anguish /ŋ/

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3 To start from short slumbers and look for the morning—    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  morning   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔːnɪŋ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): start/slumbers /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): short/for/morning /ɔː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): start/slumbers /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): start/short /t/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): from/slumbers/morning /m/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): from/for /f/

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4 Yet close my dull eyes when I see it returning;    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  returning   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɜːnɪŋ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  assonance (phonological): Yet/when /e/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): my/eyes/I /aɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Yet/it/returning /t/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): close/see /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): when/returning /n/

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2

5 Sighs sudden and frequent, looks ever dejected,    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  dejected   |   Rhyme sound:  /ektɪd/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): Sighs/sudden /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): ever/dejected /e/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Sighs/sudden /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): sudden/dejected /d/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): frequent/looks/dejected /k/

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6 Sounds that steal from my tongue, by no meaning connected!    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  connected   |   Rhyme sound:  /ektɪd/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): Sounds/steal /s/
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): my/meaning /m/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): steal/meaning /iː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): my/by /aɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Sounds/no/meaning/connected /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Sounds/steal /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): that/tongue /t/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): from/my/meaning /m/

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7 Ah say, fellow-swains, how these symptoms befell me?    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  me   |   Rhyme sound:  /iː/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): say/symptoms /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): say/fellow-swains /eɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): fellow-swains/befell /e/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): these/me /iː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): symptoms/befell /ɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): say/fellow-swains/symptoms /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): fellow-swains/befell /l/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): fellow-swains/befell /f/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): symptoms/me /m/
Figure:  epistrophe (morphological): me
Figure:  ecphonesis (pragmatic): Ah...

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8 They smile, but reply not. Sure Delia will tell me!    
Rhyme:  aabb   |   Rhyme word(s):  me   |   Rhyme sound:  /iː/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|--+|--+|--+|-/   |   Syllables:  12
Figure:  assonance (phonological): smile/reply /aɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): reply/Delia/will /ɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): Delia/me /iː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): smile/Delia/will/tell /l/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): but/not/tell /t/
Figure:  epistrophe (morphological): me

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0 Song I 1 Textual

Title/Paratext] "These verses were first printed [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"These verses were first printed by Warton in his edition of Pope's "Works," 1797, as a footnote to Pope's "Imitations of English Poets," with this note:—"In the following love-verses is a strain of sensibility which the reader will be pleased, I suppose, to see, being now first published from a manuscript of Mr. Gray." They next appeared in a letter signed "C. L. T. Etonenis," in the "Gentleman's Magazine" for Aug. 1799, described as a "literary curiosity, being the only specimen of Gray's excellence in amatory composition."
    The original MS. was presented by the Countess de Viry (Miss Speed) with the ensuing "Song," to the Rev. Mr. Leman when he visited her in 1780, and by him they were given to Warton.
    It is probable that like the "Song," and the "Rondeau," they were written at the request of this lady, of whom Gray says in the "Long Story,"—"Alas who would not wish to please her."
    The first edition of Gray's "Poems" in which these verses appeared was Stephen Jones' (1799), who gave them the title of "The Enquiry," observing, "the following amatory lines having been found among the MSS. of Gray, but bearing no title, I have ventured for the sake of uniformity in this volume to prefix the above"; and Mitford (ed. 1814) gave them the title of "Amatory Lines," by which they have been known ever since."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 267-268.

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1

1 'Midst beauty and pleasure's gay triumphs, to languish
2 And droop without knowing the source of my anguish;
3 To start from short slumbers and look for the morning—
4 Yet close my dull eyes when I see it returning;

2

5 Sighs sudden and frequent, looks ever dejected,
6 Sounds that steal from my tongue, by no meaning connected!
7 Ah say, fellow-swains, how these symptoms befell me?
8 They smile, but reply not. Sure Delia will tell me!

Works cited

  • The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891.

Spelling has been modernized throughout, except in case of conscious archaisms. Contractions, italics and initial capitalization have been largely eliminated, except where of real import. Obvious errors have been silently corrected, punctuation has been supplied. The editor would like to express his gratitude to the library staff of the Göttingen State and University Library (SUB Göttingen) for their invaluable assistance.

About this text

  • Composition: before October 1761
  • Publication: 1797
  • Base text: Commonplace Book
  • Metre: anapaestic tetrameter (catalectic)
  • Rhyme scheme: aa
  • Verse form: couplets
  • Stanza: quatrains
  • Genre: song
  • Finding Aid: MS witnesses
  • Notes/Queries: 1
  • Source: TEI/XML
  • Visualization: Poem Viewer

Editions in the Digital Library

  • 1800: The Poems of Gray. A new edition. London, 1800.
  • 1816: The Works of Thomas Gray, Vol. I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1816.
  • 1826: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray. London, 1826.
  • 1836: The Works of Thomas Gray, Volume I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1836.