Poems of James Clarence Mangan (Many hitherto uncollected): Centenary edition: Edited, with preface and notes by D. J. O'Donoghue: Introduction by John Mitchel |
 | I. |
| II. |
| III. |
 | IV. |
|
WHAT IS LOVE? |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
 | Poems of James Clarence Mangan |  |
223
WHAT IS LOVE?
What is Love? I asked a lover—Liken it, he answered, weeping,
To a flood unchained and sweeping
Over shell-strewn grottoes, over
Beds of roses, lilies, tulips,
O'er all flowers that most enrich the
Garden, in one headlong torrent,
Till they shew a wreck from which the
Eye and mind recoil abhorrent.
Hearts may woo hearts, lips may woo lips,
And gay days be spent in gladness,
Dancing, feasting, lilting, luting,
But the end of all is Sadness,
Desolation, Devastation,
Spoliation and Uprooting!
| Poems of James Clarence Mangan | |