Sonnet XXXIV.
Happy the maimed, the halt, the mad, the blind-- All who, stamped separate by curtailing birth, Owe no duty's allegiance to mankind Nor stand a valuing in their scheme of worth! But I, whom Fate, not Nature, did curtail, By no exterior voidness being exempt, Must bear accusing glances where I fail, Fixed in the general orbit of contempt. Fate, less than Nature in being kind to lacking, Giving the ill, shows not as outer cause, Making our mock-free will the mirror's backing Which Fate's own acts as if in itself shows; And men, like children, seeing the image there, Take place for cause and make our will Fate bear.
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"Happy the maimed, the halt, the mad, the blind--..."
Exploring the themes of classic, Fernando Antnio Nogueira Pessoa delivers a powerful performance in "Sonnet XXXIV."... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...