Here’s something I had somehow missed – which reminded me of someone I loved and have dearly missed for many years
I learned much of what I know about how to write by reading English writers of the 17th and 18th century. Nobody ever wrote better than Bacon, Donne and Dryden.
But somehow I had missed Robert Herrick.
His younger brother died when young. So did my younger brother George when he was just 41, in frightful agony .
If you have ever lost someone dear to you, read what Herrick wrote about his brother.
Thinking of mine and how I miss him, it made me cry.
You must make a little effort over the spelling, though – and God knows, great writing deserves more than a little effort.
Here it is.
“Life of my life, take not so soone thy flight
But stay the time till we have bade good night
Thou hast both wind and tide with thee; thy way
As soone dispatcht is by the night as day.
Let us not then so rudely henceforth goe
Till we have wept, kisst, sigh’t, shook hands, or so”
I came across this in a book called Reprobates, by John Stubbs, about the cavaliers of the Civil War.
If I live to be a thousand I could never write anything as good.
No harm in trying, though.
Never thought Herrick went beyond rosebud gathering and the sexy Julia!
One line I didn’t get owing to premature senility, is because I can’t get what “as” means in it: “As soone dispatcht is by the night as day.”
Any ideas?
Thanks very much/Thanks – never mind!
As quickly sent, literally, Probir. But of course writers of that period were very sophisticated with words – John Donne in particular – and dispatcht has a double meaning, for it also meant killed. I don’t believe anyone writing today – or indeed since the 18th century – had such a command of words as these people. Dickens, for instance, had a fearful amount of waffle in his stuff.
I think he wanted him to stay a bit longer, until night time – the end of the day when they had spent more time together.
‘As soone dispatcht is by the night as day’ could mean a request: surely death could take him after they had the chance to live the whole day and to say goodbye? Why take him so prematurely?
Outstanding post however , I was wanting to know if you could write a litte more on this topic? I’d be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Thanks!
Would you elaborate, please
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