Login
|
Join PoetrySoup
Home
Submit Poems
Login
Sign Up
Member Home
My Poems
My Quotes
My Profile & Settings
My Inboxes
My Outboxes
Soup Mail
Contest Results/Status
Contests
Poems
Poets
Famous Poems
Famous Poets
Dictionary
Types of Poems
Quotes
Short Stories
Articles
Forum
Blogs
Poem of the Day
New Poems
Resources
Syllable Counter
Anthology
Grammar Check
Greeting Card Maker
Classifieds
Member Area
Member Home
My Profile and Settings
My Poems
My Quotes
My Short Stories
My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder
Soup Social
Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us
Member Poems
Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Random
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread
Member Poets
Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest
Famous Poems
Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100
Famous Poets
Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War
Poetry Resources
Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetics
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
Store
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter
Email Poem
Your IP Address: 18.223.123.45
From Email:
Required
Email Address Not Valid.
To Email:
Email Address Not Valid.
Required
Subject
Required
Personal Note:
Poem Title:
Poem
THERE were two youths of equal age, Wit, station, strength, and parentage; They studied at the self-same schools, And shaped their thoughts by common rules. One pondered on the life of man, His hopes, his endings, and began To rate the Market's sordid war As something scarce worth living for. "I'll brace to higher aims," said he, "I'll further Truth and Purity; Thereby to mend and mortal lot And sweeten sorrow. Thrive I not, "Winning their hearts, my kind will give Enough that I may lowly live, And house my Love in some dim dell, For pleasing them and theirs so well." Idly attired, with features wan, In secret swift he labored on; Such press of power had brought much gold Applied to things of meaner mould. Sometimes he wished his aims had been To gather gains like other men; Then thanked his God he'd traced his track Too far for wish to drag him back. He look?d from his loft one day To where his slighted garden lay; Nettles and hemlock hid each lawn, And every flower was starved and gone. He fainted in his heart, whereon He rose, and sought his plighted one, Resolved to loose her bond withal, Lest she should perish in his fall. He met her with a careless air, As though he'd ceased to find her fair, And said: "True love is dust to me; I cannot kiss: I tire of thee!" (That she might scorn him was he fain, To put her sooner out of pain; For incensed love breathes quick and dies, When famished love a-lingering lies.) Once done, his soul was so betossed, It found no more the force it lost: Hope was his only drink and food, And hope extinct, decay ensued. And, living long so closely penned, He had not kept a single friend; He dwindled thin as phantoms be, And drooped to death in poverty.... Meantime his schoolmate had gone out To join the fortune-finding rout; He liked the winnings of the mart, But wearied of the working part. He turned to seek a privy lair, Neglecting note of garb and hair, And day by day reclined and thought How he might live by doing nought. "I plan a valued scheme," he said To some. "But lend me of your bread, And when the vast result looms nigh, In profit you shall stand as I." Yet they took counsel to restrain Their kindness till they saw the gain; And, since his substance now had run, He rose to do what might be done. He went unto his Love by night, And said: "My Love, I faint in fight: Deserving as thou dost a crown, My cares shall never drag thee down." (He had descried a maid whose line Would hand her on much corn and wine, And held her far in worth above One who could only pray and love.) But this Fair read him; whence he failed To do the deed so blithely hailed; He saw his projects wholly marred, And gloom and want oppressed him hard; Till, living to so mean an end, Whereby he'd lost his every friend, He perished in a pauper sty, His mate the dying pauper nigh. And moralists, reflecting, said, As "dust to dust" in burial read Was echoed from each coffin-lid, "These men were like in all they did."
Type the characters you see in the picture
Required