Poetry Flashcards
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.”
Psalm 23 (Bible)
“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”
Psalm 42 (Bible)
“Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.”
Psalm 130 (Bible)
“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’”
Psalm 137 (Bible)
“Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame. Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot sweep it away. If one were to give all the wealth of one’s house for love, it would be utterly scorned.”
The Song of Solomon (Bible)
“Often the solitary one
finds grace for himself
the mercy of the Lord,
although he, sorry-hearted,
must for a long time
row with his hands the ice-cold sea,
tread the paths of exile.”
“The Wanderer”
“For him the tossing of waves
would become the play of the swans,
the drinking of the gannets, feasting,
the singing of seabirds his calling;
the sea-mew’s laughter, clamorousness,
would take the place of the laughter of men,
the wailing of gulls, the icicles’
cold, the music of a harp.”
“The Seafarer”
“Now must we praise
the Guardian of the heavenly kingdom,
the might of the Creator, and his purpose,
the work of the Father of glory
— how each of the wonders of the Eternal Lord,
the beginning established it.”
“Caedmon’s Hymn”
“I sing of a maiden
That is makeless;
King of all kings
To her Son she ches.”
“I Sing of a Maiden”
“O lang, lang may the ladies sit
Wi’ their fans into their hand
Or e’er they see Sir Patrick Spens
Come sailing to the land.”
Sir Patrick Spens”
“Lully, lullay, thou little tiny child,
Bye, bye, lully, lullay.”
“The Corpus Christi Carol”
“Western wind, when wilt thou blow,
The small rain down can rain?
Christ, that my love were in my arms,
And I in my bed again.”
“Western Wind”
“Whoso list to hunt, I know where is an hind,
But as for me, hélas, I may no more.
The vain travail hath wearied me so sore,
I am of them that farthest cometh behind.”
(Wyatt) “Whoso List to Hunt”
“If all the world and love were young,
And truth in every shepherd’s tongue,
These pretty pleasures might me move
To live with thee and be thy love.”
(Raleigh) “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd”
“Loving in truth, and fain in verse my love to show,
That she, dear she, might take some pleasure of my pain,—
Pleasure might cause her read, reading might make her know,
Knowledge might pity win, and pity grace obtain,—”
(Sidney) “Astrophel and Stella”
“For God’s sake hold your tongue, and let me love,
Or chide my palsy, or my gout,
My five gray hairs, or ruin’d fortune flout,
With wealth your state, your mind with arts improve,
(Donne) “The Canonization”
“And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Which watch not one another out of fear;
For love all love of other sights controls,
And makes one little room an everywhere.”
(Donne) “The Good-Morrow”
“As virtuous men pass mildly away,
And whisper to their souls to go,
Whilst some of their sad friends do say,
‘Now his breath goes,’ and some say, ‘No.’”
(Donne) “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning”
“Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.”
(Donne) Holy Sonnet 10
“Batter my heart, three-personed God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o’erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.”
(Donne) Holy Sonnet 14
“Farewell, thou child of my right hand, and joy;
My sin was too much hope of thee, loved boy.
Seven years thou’wert lent to me, and I thee pay,
Exacted by thy fate, on the just day.”
(Jonson) “On My First Son”
“Thou art not, Penshurst, built to envious show,
Of touch or marble, nor canst boast a row
Of polished pillars, or a roof of gold;
Thou hast no lantern whereof tales are told,”
(Jonson) “To Penshurst”
“Queen and huntress, chaste and fair,
Now the sun is laid to sleep,
Seated in thy silver chair,
State in wonted manner keep:”
(Jonson) “Queen and Huntress, Sweet and Fair”
“Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorrow will be dying.”
(Herrick) “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time”
