Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SLEEP (A WOMAN SPEAKS), by JEAN INGELOW


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SLEEP (A WOMAN SPEAKS), by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: O sleep, we are beholden to thee, sleep
Last Line: Never to want, never to wish for thee!
Subject(s): Grief; Light; Love; Man-woman Relationships; Night; Sleep; Sorrow; Sadness; Male-female Relations; Bedtime


O SLEEP, we are beholden to thee, sleep,
Thou bearest angels to us in the night,
Saints out of heaven with palms. Seen by thy light
Sorrow is some old tale that goeth not deep;
Love is a pouting child. Once I did sweep
Through space with thee, and lo, a dazzling sight --
Stars! They came on, I felt their drawing and might;
And some had dark companions. Once (I weep
When I remember that) we sailed the tide,
And found fair isles, where no isles used to bide,
And met there my lost love, who said to me,
That 'twas a long mistake: he had not died.
Sleep, in the world to come how strange't will be
Never to want, never to wish for thee!





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