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Sonnets on English Dramatic Poets (1590-1650): Anonymous Plays

By Algernon Charles Swinburne

Topics: classic

Ye too, dim watchfires of some darkling hour,     Whose fame forlorn time saves not nor proclaims     For ever, but forgetfulness defames     And darkness and the shadow of death devour,     Lift up ye too your light, put forth your power,     Let the far twilight feel your soft small flames     And smile, albeit night name not even their names,     Ghost by ghost passing, flower blown down on flower:     That sweet-tongued shadow, like a stars that passed     Singing, and light was from its darkness cast     To paint the face of Painting fair with praise:1     And that wherein forefigured smiles the pure     Fraternal face of Wordsworths Elidure     Between two child-faced masks of merrier days.2

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"Ye too, dim watchfires of some darkling hour,..."

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Author:Algernon Charles Swinburne

"Ye too, dim watchfires of some darkling hour,..." by Algernon Charles Swinburne

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Algernon Charles Swinburne

About Algernon Charles Swinburne

Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837–1909) was an English poet known for metrical innovation and bold themes. His "Atalanta in Calydon" and "Poems and Ballads" challenged Victorian conventions with their musical intensity and controversial subject matter.

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