Opposition
Of fret, of dark, of thorn, of chill, [1]
Complain no more; for these, O heart,
Direct the random of the will
As rhymes direct the rage of art.
The lute's fixt fret, that runs athwart
The strain and purpose of the string,
For governance and nice consort
Doth bar his willful wavering.
The dark hath many dear avails;
The dark distils divinest dews;
The dark is rich with nightingales, [11]
With dreams, and with the heavenly Muse.
Bleeding with thorns of petty strife,
I'll ease (as lovers do) my smart
With sonnets to my lady Life
Writ red in issues from the heart.
What grace may lie within the chill
Of favor frozen fast in scorn!
When Good's a-freeze, we call it Ill!
This rosy Time is glacier-born.
Of fret, of dark, of thorn, of chill, [21]
Complain thou not, O heart; for these
Bank-in the current of the will
To uses, arts, and charities.
____
Baltimore, 1879-80.
Notes: Opposition
As an introduction to this poem I quote a sentence from Dr. Gates's
excellent essay: "As we look at the circumstances of his life,
let us carry with us the strains of this poem, which interprets
the use of crosses, interferences, and attempted thwartings of one's purpose;
for the ethical value of Lanier's life and writings can be fully understood
only by remembering how much he overcame and how heroically he persisted
in manly work in his chosen art through years of such broken health
as would have driven most men to the inert, self-indulgent life of an invalid.
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