A poem by Alexander Pope (1688-1744) , the greatest English poet of “Augustan” or Georgian period
Strophe I.
Ye shades, where sacred truth is sought;
Groves, where immortal Sages taught;
Where heav’nly visions of Plato fir’d,
And Epicurus lay inspir’d!
In vain your guiltless laurels stood
Unspotted long with human blood.
War, horrid war, your thoughtful walks invades,
And steel now glitters in the Muses’ shades.
Antistrophe I.
Oh heav’n-born sisters! source of art!
Who charm the sense, or mend the heart;
Who lead fair Virtue’s train along,
Moral Truth, and mystic Song!
To what new clime, what distant sky,
Forsaken, friendless, shall ye fly?
Say, will you bless the bleak Atlantic shore?
Or bid the furious Gaul be rude no more?
Strophe II.
When Athens sinks by fates unjust,
When wild Barbarians spurn her dust;
Perhaps ev’n Britain’s utmost shore,
Shall cease to blush with strager’s gore.
See Arts her savage sons control,
And Athens rising near the pole!
‘Till some new Tyrant lifts his purple hand,
And civil madness tears them from this land.
Antistrophe II.
Ye Gods! what justice rules the ball?
Freedom and Arts together fall;
Fools grant whate’er Ambition craves,
And men, once ignorant, are slaves.
Oh curs’d effects of civil hate,
In ev’ry age, in ev’ry state!
Still, when the lust of tyrant power succeeds,
Some Athens perishes, some Tully bleeds.
A few random poems:
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External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- Essay on Man poem – Alexander Pope
- Epistles to Several Persons: Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot poem – Alexander Pope
- Epistles to Several Persons: Epistle IV, To Richard Boyle, poem – Alexander Pope
- Epistle II: To A Lady (Of the Characters of Women) poem – Alexander Pope
- Epigram Engraved on the Collar of a Dog Which I Gave to His Royal Highness poem – Alexander Pope
- Eloisa to Abelard poem – Alexander Pope
- Elegy to the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady poem – Alexander Pope
- Couplets on Wit poem – Alexander Pope
- Argus poem – Alexander Pope
- An Essay on Man in Four Epistles: Epistle 1 poem – Alexander Pope
- An Essay On Criticism poem – Alexander Pope
- The Rape of the Lock: Canto 4 poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Rape of the Lock: Canto 3 poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Rape of the Lock: Canto 2 poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Rape of the Lock: Canto 1 poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Rape of the Lock poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Iliad: Book VI (excerpt) poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Dying Christian to His Soul poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Three Gentle Shepherds poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- The Temple of Fame poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
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Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works

Alexander Pope (1688 – 1744) was a a post-Restoration English poet and satirist. He is a poet of the (British) Augustan period and one of its greatest artistic exponents.