They Called Thee Merry England, In Old Time
William Wordsworth 1770 (Wordsworth House) – 1850 (Cumberland)
They called Thee Merry England, in old time;
A happy people won for thee that name
With envy heard in many a distant clime;
And, spite of change, for me thou keep'st the same
Endearing title, a responsive chime
To the heart's fond belief; though some there are
Whose sterner judgments deem that word a snare
For inattentive Fancy, like the lime
Which foolish birds are caught with. Can, I ask,
This face of rural beauty be a mask
For discontent, and poverty, and crime;
These spreading towns a cloak for lawless will?
Forbid it, Heaven! and Merry England still
Shall be thy rightful name, in prose and rhyme!
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on April 02, 2023
- 33 sec read
- 31 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABABACDAEEAFFA |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 595 |
Words | 109 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
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"They Called Thee Merry England, In Old Time" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 12 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/57121/they-called-thee-merry-england,-in-old-time>.
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