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Poem
December 8, 1758
The New Hampshire Gazette
Portsmouth, Rockingham County, New Hampshire
What is this article about?
This poem reflects on the universal mutability affecting all things under the sun, from monarchs and fiddlers to women's beauty, and parallels it with the changing fashions of words, exemplified by linguistic shifts in Queen Elizabeth's era.
Clipping
OCR Quality
88%
Good
Full Text
On the Mutability of Words and Things.
ALL Things, beneath the Circle of the Sun,
Through a perpetual Transformation run;
Monarchs and Fiddlers fall to Death a Prey,
And George and Jacob * will be Snatch'd away
E'en Sally's Charms will ruthless TIME deface.
And furrowing Wrinkles spoil Belinda's Face.
So WORDS change Fashion (like a Lady's Hoop)
And what's not Sugar, may next Age, be Soap;
And as new words are coin'd, so orders came
The old Ones vanish and grow out of Date:
Thus in the thirty Days of good Queen Bess,
Knave stood for Slave, and Goody for a Lass.*
* A blind Fiddler.
ALL Things, beneath the Circle of the Sun,
Through a perpetual Transformation run;
Monarchs and Fiddlers fall to Death a Prey,
And George and Jacob * will be Snatch'd away
E'en Sally's Charms will ruthless TIME deface.
And furrowing Wrinkles spoil Belinda's Face.
So WORDS change Fashion (like a Lady's Hoop)
And what's not Sugar, may next Age, be Soap;
And as new words are coin'd, so orders came
The old Ones vanish and grow out of Date:
Thus in the thirty Days of good Queen Bess,
Knave stood for Slave, and Goody for a Lass.*
* A blind Fiddler.
What sub-type of article is it?
Ode
What themes does it cover?
Moral Virtue
Death Mourning
What keywords are associated?
Mutability
Transformation
Time
Words
Queen Bess
Language Change
Death
Poem Details
Title
On The Mutability Of Words And Things.
Form / Style
Rhymed Couplets
Key Lines
All Things, Beneath The Circle Of The Sun,
Through A Perpetual Transformation Run;
So Words Change Fashion (Like A Lady's Hoop)
And What's Not Sugar, May Next Age, Be Soap;
Thus In The Thirty Days Of Good Queen Bess,
Knave Stood For Slave, And Goody For A Lass.*