Poem by Edmund Spenser

Amoretti 43. Shall I then silent be, or shall I speake?

Shall I then silent be, or shall I speake?
And if I speake, her wrath renew I shall;
And if I silent be, my hart will breake,
Or choked be with overflowing gall.
What tyranny is this, both my hart to thrall,
And eke my toung with proud restraint to tie,
That neither I may speake nor thinke at all,
But like a stupid stock in silence die!
Yet I my hart with silence secretly
Will teach to speak and my just cause to plead,
And eke mine eies, with meek humility,
Love-learned letters to her eyes to read;
  Which her deep wit, that true harts thought can spel,
  Wil soon conceive, and learne to construe well.

1. Amoretti 46. When my abodes prefixed time is spent
2. Amoretti 49. Fayre Cruell! why are ye so fierce and cruell?
3. Amoretti 32. The paynefull smith with force of fervent heat
4. Amoretti 63. After long stormes and tempests sad assay
5. Amoretti 73. Being my self captyved here in care

Print

1605 Views

Last Poems

To Russian version