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Poem
January 13, 1814
The Rhode Island Republican
Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island
What is this article about?
A lyrical poem contrasting careless, fleeting love with faithful, enduring love that persists from youth to old age, elevating the latter to saintly devotion.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
WHAT IS LOVE ?
To sigh—yet feel no pain:
To weep—yet know not why;
To sport an hour with beauty's chain,
Then throw it idly by!
To kneel at many a shrine—
Yet lay the heart on none
To think all other charms divine,
But those we just have won.
This is Love—careless Love,
Such as kindleth hearts that rove,
To keep one sacred flame,
Through life, unchill'd, unmov'd;
To love, in wintry age, the same
That first in youth we lov'd:
To feel that we adore,
To such refin'd excess,
That tho' the heart would break with more,
We could not live with less,
This is Love—faithful Love—
Such as Saints might feel above!
To sigh—yet feel no pain:
To weep—yet know not why;
To sport an hour with beauty's chain,
Then throw it idly by!
To kneel at many a shrine—
Yet lay the heart on none
To think all other charms divine,
But those we just have won.
This is Love—careless Love,
Such as kindleth hearts that rove,
To keep one sacred flame,
Through life, unchill'd, unmov'd;
To love, in wintry age, the same
That first in youth we lov'd:
To feel that we adore,
To such refin'd excess,
That tho' the heart would break with more,
We could not live with less,
This is Love—faithful Love—
Such as Saints might feel above!
What sub-type of article is it?
Ode
What themes does it cover?
Love Courtship
Moral Virtue
What keywords are associated?
Love Definition
Careless Love
Faithful Love
Romantic Affection
Enduring Devotion
Youth To Age
Poem Details
Title
What Is Love ?
Form / Style
Rhymed Stanzas
Key Lines
This Is Love—Careless Love,
Such As Kindleth Hearts That Rove,
This Is Love—Faithful Love—
Such As Saints Might Feel Above!