Oliver Goldsmith Poems

A collection of select Oliver Goldsmith famous poems that were written by Oliver Goldsmith or written about the poet by other famous poets. PoetrySoup is a comprehensive educational resource of the greatest poems and poets on history.

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An Elegy On The Death Of A Mad Dog

by Oliver Goldsmith
 Good people all, of every sort,
Give ear unto my song;
And if you find it wondrous short,
It cannot hold you long.

In Islington there was a man
Of whom the world might say,
That still a godly race he ran— 
Whene'er he went to pray.

A kind and gentle heart he had,
To comfort friends and foes;
The naked every day he clad— 
When he put...Read more of this...

An Elegy On The Glory Of Her Sex Mrs Mary Blaize

by Oliver Goldsmith
 Good people all, with one accord
Lament for Madam Blaize,
Who never wanted a good word,— 
From those who spoke her praise.

The needy seldom passed her door,
And always found her kind;
She freely lent to all the poor,— 
Who left a pledge behind.

She strove the neighbourhood to please
With manners wondrous winning;
And never followed wicked ways,— 
Unless when she was sinning.

At church, in...Read more of this...

The Seven Sages

by William Butler Yeats
 The First. My great-grandfather spoke to Edmund Burke
 In Grattan's house.
The Second. My great-grandfather shared
 A pot-house bench with Oliver Goldsmith once.
The Third. My great-grandfather's father talked of music,
 Drank tar-water with the Bishop of Cloyne.
The Fourth. But mine saw Stella once.
The Fifth. Whence came our thought?
The Sixth. From four great minds that hated Whiggery.
The Fifth. Burke was a...Read more of this...

When Lovely Woman Stoops To Folly

by Oliver Goldsmith
 When lovely woman stoops to folly,
And finds too late that men betray,
What charm can soothe her melancholy,
What art can wash her guilt away?

The only art her guilt to cover,
To hide her shame from every eye,
To give repentance to her lover,
And wring his bosom, is—to die....Read more of this...

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