The Faerie Queene

"Such is the weakness of all mortal hope; So tickle is the state of earthly things; That, ere they come unto their aimed scope, They fall too short of our frail reckonings, And bring us bale and bitter sorrowings, Instead of comfort which we should embrace."

"Ill seems," said he, "if he so valiant be, That he should be so stern to stranger wight: For seldom yet did living creature see That courtesy and manhood ever disagree."

"Therein he them full fair did entertain, Not with such forged shows, as fitter been For courting fools that courtesies would feign, But with entire affection and appearance plain."

"No wound, which warlike hand of enemy Inflicts with dint of sword, so sore doth light As doth the poisonous sting which infamy Infixeth in the name of noble wight: For by no art, nor any leach's might, It ever can recured be again; Nor all the skill, which that immortal spright Of Podalirius did in it retain, Can remedy such hurts; such hurts are hellish pain."

"Through thick and thin, through mountains and through plains."

"Ye gentle ladies, in whose sovereign power Love hath the glory of his kingdom left, And the hearts of men, as your eternal dower, In iron chains, of liberty bereft, Delivered hath into your hands by gift; Be well aware how ye the same do use, That pride do not to tyranny you lift; Lest, if men you of cruelty accuse, He from you take that chiefdom which ye do abuse."

"It is the mind that maketh good or ill, That maketh wretch or happy, rich or poor: For some that hath abundance at his will Hath not enough, but wants in greatest store; And other that hath little asks no more, But in that little is both rich and wise; For wisdom is most riches; fools therefore They are which fortunes do by vows devise, Since each unto himself his life may fortunize."

"Old love is little worth when new is more preferred."

"The joys of love, if they should ever last Without affliction or disquietness That worldly chances do amongst them cast, Would be on earth too great a blessedness, Liker to heaven than mortal wretchedness: Therefore the winged god, to let men weet That here on earth is no sure happiness, A thousand sours hath tempered with one sweet, To make it seem more dear and dainty, as is meet."

"And therein were a thousand tongues empight Of sundry kinds and sundry quality; Some were of dogs, that barked day and night, And some of cats, that wrawling still did cry, And some of bears, that groined continually, And some of tigers, that did seem to gren And snarl at all that ever passed by; But most of them were tongues of mortal men, Which spake reproachfully, not caring where nor when.And them amongst were mingled here and there The tongues of serpents, with three-forked stings, That spat out poison, and gore-bloody gear, At all that came within his ravenings; And spake licentious words and hateful things Of good and bad alike, of low and high; Nor kaisers spared he a whit nor kings, But either blotted them with infamy, Or bit them with his baneful teeth of injury."

"Warres and allarums vnto Nations wide."

"Good on-set boads good end."

"Ne ought it mote the noble Mayd auayle, Ne slake the fury of her cruell flame, But that shee still did waste, and still did wayle, That through long languour, & hart-burning brame She shortly like a pyned ghost became."

"Most sacred fyre, that burnest mightily In liuing brests, ykindled first aboue, Emongst th'eternall spheres and lamping sky, And thence pourd into men, which men call Loue."

"Whereof she seemes ashamed inwardly."

"Where is the Antique glory now become, That whylome wont in wemen to appeare? Where be the braue atchieuements doen by some? Where be the batteilles, where the shield & speare, And all the conquests, which them high did reare, That matter made for famous Poets verse, And boastfull men so oft abasht to heare? Beene they all dead, and laide in dolefull herse? Or doen they onely sleepe, and shall againe reuerse?"

"But well I wote, that to an heauy hart Thou art the roote and nourse of bitter cares, Breeder of new, renewer of old smarts: In stead of rest thou lendest rayling teares, In stead of sleepe thou sendest troublous feares, And dreadfull visions, in the which aliue The dreary image of sad death appeares: So from the wearie spirit thou doest driue Desired rest, and men of happinesse depriue."

"Vnder thy mantle black there hidden lye, Light-shonning thefte, and traiterous intent, Abhorred bloodshed, and vile felony, Shamefull deceipt, and daunger imminent; Fowle horror, and eke hellish dreriment."

"Thus warred he long time against his will, Till that through weakness he was forced at last To yield himself unto the mighty ill, Which, as a victor proud, 'gan ransack fast His inward parts and all his entrails waste, That neither blood in face nor life in heart It left, but both did quite dry up and blast: As piercing levin, which the inner part Of everything consumes and calcineth by art."

"Little she weened that love he close concealed; Yet still he wasted as the snow congealed, When the bright sun his beams thereon doth beat."

"All that in this delightful garden grows Should happy be and have immortal bliss."

"There is continual spring, and harvest there Continual, both meeting at one time: For both the boughs do laughing blossoms bear And with fresh colours deck the wanton prime, And eke at once the heavy trees they climb, Which seem to labour under their fruits' load; The whiles the joyous birds make their pastime Amongst the shady leaves, their sweet abode, And their true loves without suspicion tell abroad."

"With that, adown out of her crystal eyne Few trickling tears she softly forth let fall, That like to orient pearls did purely shine Upon her snowy cheek."

"Hard is to teach an old horse amble true."

"A famous history to be enrolled In everlasting monuments of brass."

"And otherwhiles with amorous delights And pleasing toys he would her entertain, Now singing sweetly to surprise her sprites, Now making lays of love and lovers' pain, Bransles, ballads, virelays and verses vain; Oft purposes, oft riddles he devised, And thousands like which flowed in his brain, With which he fed her fancy and enticed To take to his new love and leave her old despised."

"Foul Jealousy, that turnest love divine To joyless dread, and makest the loving heart With hateful thoughts to languish and to pine And feed itself with self-consuming smart: Of all the passions in the mind thou vilest art."

"Life is not lost, (said she) for which is bought Endlesse renowm."

"Dan Chaucer, well of English undefiled, On Fame's eternal beadroll worthy to be filed."

"Born of one mother in one happy mould, Born at one burden in one happy morn."

"That cruell Atropos eftsoones vndid, With cursed knife cutting the twist in twaine: Most wretched men, whose dayes depend on thrids so vaine."

"Sweete is the loue that comes alone with willingnesse."

"All she did was but to wear out day. Full oftentimes she leave of him did take; And oft again devised somewhat to say, Which she forgot, whereby excuse to make: So loath she was his company for to forsake."

"Yet was he but a squire of low degree."

"For like the stings of Aspes, that kill with smart, Her spightfull words did pricke, & wound the inner part."

"From that day forth, in peace and joyous bliss They lived together long without debate; Nor private jar, nor spite of enemies, Could shake the safe assurance of their state."

"For all that nature by her mother-wit Could frame in earth."

"And her against sweet Cheerfulness was placed, Whose eyes, like twinkling stars in evening clear, Were decked with smiles that all sad humours chased, And darted forth delights the which her goodly graced."

"Me seems the world is run quite out of square From the first point of his appointed source; And, being once amiss, grows daily worse and worse."

"For that which all men then did virtue call, Is now called vice; and that which vice was hight, Is now hight virtue, and so used of all; Right now is wrong, and wrong that was is right."

"He maketh kings to sit in sovereignty; He maketh subjects to their power obey; He pulleth down, he setteth up on high; He gives to this, from that he takes away: For all we have is his: what he list do, he may."

"For take thy balance, if thou be so wise, And weigh the wind that under heaven doth blow; Or weigh the light that in the east doth rise; Or weigh the thought that from man's mind doth flow."

"After long storms and tempests overblown, The sun at length his joyous face doth clear; So whenas fortune all her spite hath shown, Some blissful hours at last must needs appear; Else would afflicted wights oft-times despair."

"All suddenly inflamed with furious fit, Like a fell lioness at him she flew, And on his head-piece him so fiercely smit, That to the ground him quite she overthrew, Dismayed so with the stroke that he no colours knew."

"Dearer is love than life, and fame than gold; But dearer than them both, your faith once plighted hold."

"O sacred hunger of ambitious minds And impotent desire of men to reign, Whom neither dread of God, that devils binds, Nor laws of men, that commonweals contain, Nor bands of nature, that wild beasts restrain, Can keep from outrage and from doing wrong, Where they may hope a kingdom to obtain. No faith so firm, no trust can be so strong, No love so lasting then, that may enduren long."

"Her hands were foul and dirty, never washed In all her life, with long nails over-raught, Like puttock's claws with the one of which she scratched Her cursed head, although it itched naught; The other held a snake with venom fraught, On which she fed and gnawed hungrily, As if that long she had not eaten aught; That round about her jaws one might descry The bloody gore and poison dropping loathsomely."

"Her face was ugly, and her mouth distort, Foaming with poison round about her gills, In which her cursed tongue (full sharp and short) Appeared like asp's sting, that closely kills Or cruelly does wound whomso she wills; A distaff in her other hand she had, Upon the which she little spins, but spills; And fains to weave false tales and leasings bad, To throw amongst the good, which others had disprad."

"But Virtue's seat is deep within the mind, And not in outward shows but inward thoughts defined."

"First, sturdy March with brows full sternly bent, And armed strongly, rode vpon a Ram, The same which ouer Hellespontus swam: Yet in his hand a spade he also hent, And in a bag all sorts of seeds ysame, Which on the earth he strowed as he went, And fild her womb with fruitfull hope of nourishment."