Skip to content
Linespedia

Austerity Of Poetry

By Matthew Arnold

Topics: classic

That son of Italy who tried to blow,     Ere Dante came, the trump of sacred song,     In his light youth amid a festal throng     Sate with his bride to see a public show.     Fair was the bride, and on her front did glow     Youth like a star; and what to youth belong,     Gay raiment, sparkling gauds, elation strong.     A prop gave way! crash fell a platform! lo,     Mid struggling sufferers, hurt to death, she lay     Shuddering they drew her garments off and found     A robe of sackcloth next the smooth, white skin.     Such, poets, is your bride, the Muse! young, gay,     Radiant, adornd outside; a hidden ground     Of thought and of austerity within.

AI analysis available. Enable JavaScript to interact.

About this line

"That son of Italy who tried to blow,..."

"Austerity Of Poetry" is a quintessential example of Matthew Arnold's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...

Attribution & Rights

Author:Matthew Arnold

"That son of Italy who tried to blow,..." by Matthew Arnold

For usage rights, copyright concerns, or to report an issue with this content, please visit our Copyright & Report page.

Related lines

"Down the Savoy valleys sounding,     Echoing round this castle old,     Mid the distant mountain chalets     Hark! what bell for church is tol"

"Come, dear children, let us away; Down and away below! Now my brothers call from the bay, Now the great winds shoreward blow, Now the salt tides s"

"As the kindling glances, Queen-like and clear, Which the bright moon lances From her tranquil sphere At the sleepless waters Of a lonely mere, O"

"A thousand knights have reind their steeds     To watch this line of sand-hills run,     Along the never silent Strait,     To Calais glitteri"

"Here morning in the ploughman's songs is met     Ere yet one footstep shows in all the sky,     And twilight in the east, a doubt as yet,     S"

"The Text is taken from Percy's Reliques (1765), vol. i. p. 71, 'given from two MS. copies, transmitted from Scotland.' Herd had a very similar bal"

Matthew Arnold

About Matthew Arnold

Matthew Arnold (1822–1888) was an English poet and critic whose poems "Dover Beach" and "The Scholar Gipsy" explore Victorian doubt and the search for meaning. His critical work "Culture and Anarchy" (1869) remains influential in literary and cultural studies.

Full Bibliography
Continue Reading

"Down the Savoy valleys sounding,     Echoing round..."

Weekly Poetic Insight

Join our literary Sanctuary

Get the most inspiring lines, poetic analysis, and secret shayaris delivered to your inbox every Sunday.