Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

LA BELLE ENNEMIE by THOMAS STANLEY

Poet Analysis

First Line: I YIELD, DEAR ENEMY, NOR KNOW
Last Line: THOUGH GOT BY BEAUTY, KEPT BY LOVE!
Subject(s): LOVE;
I YIELD, dear enemy, nor know
How to resist so fair a foe!
Who would not thy soft yoke sustain,
And bow beneath thy easy chain,
That with a bondage bless'd might be,
Which far transcends all liberty?
But since I freely have resign'd
At first assault my willing mind,
Insult not o'er my captiv'd heart
With too much tyranny and art,
Lest by thy scorn thou lose the prize
Gain'd by the power of thy bright eyes,
And thou this conquest thus shalt prove,
Though got by Beauty, kept by Love!



Home: PoetryExplorer.net