 | The poems of Queen Elizabeth I |  |
HORACE'S ART OF POETRY
If to a mans hed a pantar woldA horsis neck conjoine
And coulored fethers ad therto
With limmes togither set,
That face aboue of woman faire,
The rest fowle like the moudy fische;
For suche a hap, my frindz,
Could you your laughtar kipe?
Belive me, Pisons, euen to this tablet
That my book be like,
Whos vane shapis shalbe faned,
As sik mans dreames be wont,
So as nor fote ne hed in one agrie.
An iniud power bold the poet and the pantar had.
We knowe this lein, axe and giue the same.
Not so the wild and tame do pere,
Nor of the birdz that serpent bride,
Nor lambes fal from tigres tetes.
Oft to beginnings graue and shewes of great is sowed
A purple pace, one or more for vewe,
Whan wood or aultar Dians aught be drawen,
Or crake of running streames in fairest fildz,
Than pant the riuer Rene or rainbow seak,
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You can perchance the cipers trie present,
What botes to pant for gayne a foteles man
From broken kile to swim to shore.
A pot ful large was ment be maid:
How hapned than the while a pipkin framed?
In time let be what so thou wilst
So that hit plain and one remain.
Of poets greatist part, O father, and youthes worthy of your sire,
All be begiled by shewe alone of good.
While brife to be I striue, skars understode I am,
And treting maters slite, I feale my strengh decay;
Professing causis dipe, my shalowe mynd astons,
And criping low on ground, to safe yet fearing flawe.
Who so one thing expres in to to many sortes,
A dolφin on the tries doth hange and bore in streame.
So flight from fault fals into lack from want of art.
A sely smith in Emilius stage play in bras
Wil nailes and silky heare with his pensel shape.
Vnhappy man in chifist part of worke,
For wanting of skil to pictur all he cannot.
Self same am I, if aught I striue compound,
No more I wische than wondar of iuel formed nose,
Or vew of blackist yee with here of likist hue.
Take you that write a matter suche as equalz best your skil
And long do pause on what your shuldars doe refuse
Or what the beare may best: who that he chuse best understands,
Nor eloquence shal he want nor ordar cleare.
For grace and vertu shal he place, or forbeare,
So as what now be said or what hirafter shal
Much he defars and for the present time omitz.
This loue he doth, this skorne of promised vers the skribe.
In placing wordz, if thou be skant and wary bothe,
The spiche shal florische wel and be estimed.
Yea, if a new word for old wel sodered thou do place,
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To frame may hap some wordz that girdled Cethes lack,
A license thou with shamfest leue mast take.
The new made wordes and faned like credit beares,
If from the Grikis spring the softly be withdrawen.
But Romane what to Plauto and Cicilius shal he giue,
If from Varios loue or Virgil hit be caught?
Why, if I litel get, nide enuid I to be,
Whan Caton and Ennius toung inriched ther weany spiche,
And new names to ther matters gaue?
Hit lawful is and euer shal, a word assigned by mark to know.
As primar leues of wood first faule and chaunge to nirest yere,
So eldred age of wordz turnes so to ther decay,
And youngmen like the borne first florische and increas.
To dethe we owe ourselves and all we haue.
Whether Neptune by erthe receued,
And baying in by northern winde the sailing ships,
Wiche is a worke and act for kinge;
Or wither a coustumed marische fit for ores
Fede the cities nire and makes them feale the plowes waight,
Or streame change the cours, the fo to frutes,
By learning bettar way. All mortal dede shal end,
Nor shal our wordz knowe honor augh nor liveliste grace.
Much shal renue that haue bine fallen, and than decay
Suche wordz as haue bine reuerenst wel, if vse hit grant,
On whose beck bothe fors and fourme of spiche dependz.
How kingz and chiftanes actz and eke ther doleful woe,
In verse how the in numbar be exprest Homere hath told.
With onjvend linked vers at first a mone the make,
But after winning wische ther verdit the haue won.
What author yet wil simple eglogs leue,
The grammars mastars striue, yet iuge the verdit kipes.
Rage with his owne stile Archilocas hath used.
This manner vers the comidantz and tragike bothe begun
Wel fitting wordz for bothe, exciding vulgar shoutes
And mitist for the greatist, waightist cause.
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The winning wrastlar, and hors the first at stop,
And telz the youngmens cares and frechat wines,
Thes changes to obserue and coulors shewed of work.
If I knowe not nor care, why poete am I called?
By sely shame chuse not to knowe than sike vs lerne.
A mery play wold not admit a tragik vers;
Thiestes scene disdaines that wordiest vers decerns,
Be told in menar verse by pourist comidant.
Let all things be as sorteth best ther place.
Yet comedie sometime lifts vp the voice,
And wrotheful Cremes with puffed face fights,
And tragik often moues in slavy gise.
Teleφus, eke Pelius, wh[en] poore and exul bothe,
Away throw the thes windblowen vase
And halved quartered vers, do care,
If care the do, with mone the loukars on to move.
Versis faire do not suffice, let them be swite
And suche as wher the wyl may turne the hirars eare.
As mery man the please, so wailing man contentz
The milddy lookes. If teares myne thou procure
Thyself must waile, so shal thy misfortune yerk me.
Ivel if you do your biddings place,
Teleφus or Peleus, or I shal slipe or laughtar make.
For sory wordes fitz best a moning face,
The furius thretful, seuere the dalear, wanton the graue,
For nature first us fourmed within ful fit,
For the bent of eche fortune helpes or throwes to er[the],
In yrking drawes vs downe with wo opprest,
Strait motions of the minde exaltz by toung exprest.
If speakars wordz unfit ther fate,
The army all with skorne wil the deride;
For much hit doth auaill whir Dauus or Eros,
Or ripid age or firs youthe in growing yeres,
Or ruling dame or careful nurse,
Wayfaring marchant, or plower of the griny fild,
In Colchis or Assyria bred, in Thebes or Argus town.
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Laudid Achilles do thou prais, hedy, ireful, graue, lerne [shipp].
Lawes he denies euer made for him, naugh must gainsay thy armes fors.
Medea let be woode vnwon, Ino ful of teares,
Faithless Ixion, wandringe Io, mourning Orestes.
If ignorant thou aught to the scene committ,
And darest new actors place perfourme,
Suche as thou first began, louke to the end thou kipe.
Ful hard hit in private sort the comme thing declare,
And rightliar shuldst thou Homers vers expres,
Than as first man the vntouche and vntold tel.
General mattar shal be made thy private part,
If thou stik not to curius about the base and commen lines,
Nor word by other like glosar sure shalt thou vse,
Nor skolar like shalt thou sample thyself in act,
Whence shame forbidz thy foote eke lawe of work,
Nor so begin as Ciclicus writar ons:
The luk of Priam shal I sing and worthy war.
What fitting so wiede chawes hathe promis now perfourmed?
The hilz ther frute do yeld, a skorned mouse is born.
How rightliar he that fondly naught doth vndertake.
Shew me, my muse, a man in after tims of taken Troy
The manars of many a man that saw togither with their towns.
Who miss not smoke of flame but light from smoke to giue,
That thens he may shewe wondars great:
Antiφaton, Silla, and with Ciclop Caribid.
Nor Diomedz return from Meleagris ruine,
Nor Trojans war from his grandfathers shel wil tel.
Euer to end he hies and to best menes.
Like as by notes the listenars eares he drawes,
That he despaires, intreting grace, he leues;
And so begiles as fals with tru doth mixe,
That midst to first and last with midst agrie.
Thou, what I and people desire do, hire.
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Til singar do afourd your clapping hands to work,
Than must thou maike the manars of eche age,
And graunted must be grace to natures changed yeare.
The boy that can pronounce his wordz
And stedy his ground with sure pace
Lips for joy to felowe his like,
Sturs vp his color, lets hit light fal,
And changes oft in many a houre.
The berdles youthe, at last mastar cast of,
Joys in horsis, dogges, and gras of open fild;
Waxlike rolled to vice, to teachar curst,
Late forsear of good, of his pence to lavische,
Hauty, glorius, swift winged to leue that he loved.
But eldar age, turning his cours with mynd manlike,
Riches sikes, frindz, to honor himself ingrafing,
Wel warning to do that strait to change he strives.
Cumbars many a one besige the aged man;
Or that he sikes thogh found as wretche he forbears
And dares not ventur the vse therof;
Or that in feare or yoy al thing he vndertakz,
Slowghful a hoper, ydel, and gridy of change,
Crabbid, whining, the praisar of passed time
Whan boy he was, a juge and beatar of his youngar.
Growing yeres great auailes do bring,
And passed gone as many do deprive.
Lest, therfor, agid part be giuen vnto the young
And mans estate bequived to the boy,
Let vs abide in suche as best agre and in ther time.
| The poems of Queen Elizabeth I | |