WeRead Powered by ReaderPub
Labor and the Angel cover

Labor and the Angel

Chapter 17: DIRGE FOR A VIOLET.
Open in WeRead

Explore more books like this:

About This Book

A collection of lyrical and narrative poems that intertwine rural and natural imagery with meditations on work, love, and moral responsibility. Poems depict harvests, seasonal change, and small lives—often pairing intimate domestic scenes with broader social observation—while recurring angelic and spiritual motifs frame labor as both suffering and sacred duty. Several sequences offer seasonal songs and short dramatic narratives; others turn to elegiac or reflective moods, addressing poverty, endurance, consolation, and the consolatory powers of love and service. The tone ranges from vivid sensory description to moral and communal critique, united by plain diction and musical cadence.

DIRGE FOR A VIOLET.

Here was a happy flower,
Born in sun and shower,
In the meadow;
Sorrow was her dower,
And shadow.
Bid the gentle mole
Dig his deepest hole,
For her rest;
Sleep has charmed her soul,
Sleep is best.
Bid the vervain spire
Light the funeral fire,
And the yarrow
Build a shady choir,
For the sparrow.
Bid him chirp and cry,
“Everything must die,
She is dead,”
Now in exequy,
All is said.