"The Soul / Of Man alone, that Particle divine, / Escapes the Wreck of Worlds, when all Things fail."
— Somervile, William (1675-1742)
Work Title
Date
1735
Metaphor
"The Soul / Of Man alone, that Particle divine, / Escapes the Wreck of Worlds, when all Things fail."
Metaphor in Context
Whate'er of Earth is form'd, to Earth returns
Dissolv'd: the various Objects we behold,
Plants, Animals, this whole material Mass,
Are ever changing, ever new. The Soul
Of Man alone, that Particle divine,
Escapes the Wreck of Worlds, when all Things fail.
Hence great the Distance 'twixt the Beasts that perish,
And God's bright Image, Man's immortal Race.
The Brute Creation are his Property,
Subservient to his Will, and for him made.
As hurtful these he kills, as useful those
Preserves; their sole and arbitrary King.
Shou'd he not kill, as erst the Samian Sage
Taught unadvis'd, and Indian Brachmans now
As vainly preach; the teeming rav'nous Brutes
Might fill the scanty Space of this Terrene,
Incumb'ring all the Globe: Shou'd not his Care
Improve his growing Stock, their Kinds might fail,
Man might once more on Roots and Acorns feed,
And thro' the Deserts range, shiv'ring, forlorn,
Quite destitute of ev'ry Solace dear,
And ev'ry smiling Gayety of Life.
(Bk IV, ll. 1-22, p. 78-79)
Dissolv'd: the various Objects we behold,
Plants, Animals, this whole material Mass,
Are ever changing, ever new. The Soul
Of Man alone, that Particle divine,
Escapes the Wreck of Worlds, when all Things fail.
Hence great the Distance 'twixt the Beasts that perish,
And God's bright Image, Man's immortal Race.
The Brute Creation are his Property,
Subservient to his Will, and for him made.
As hurtful these he kills, as useful those
Preserves; their sole and arbitrary King.
Shou'd he not kill, as erst the Samian Sage
Taught unadvis'd, and Indian Brachmans now
As vainly preach; the teeming rav'nous Brutes
Might fill the scanty Space of this Terrene,
Incumb'ring all the Globe: Shou'd not his Care
Improve his growing Stock, their Kinds might fail,
Man might once more on Roots and Acorns feed,
And thro' the Deserts range, shiv'ring, forlorn,
Quite destitute of ev'ry Solace dear,
And ev'ry smiling Gayety of Life.
(Bk IV, ll. 1-22, p. 78-79)
Categories
Provenance
Reading
Citation
22 entries in ESTC (1735, 1743, 1749, 1755, 1757, 1758, 1766, 1767, 1768, 1773, 1786, 1796, 1799, 1800).
Text from The Chace. A Poem. To Which Is Added, Hobbinol, or the Rural Games: a Burlesque Poem, in Blank Verse. By William Somervile, Esq. 4th ed. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by M. Cooper at the Globe in Pater-Noster-Row, 1749). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
See also The Chace. A Poem. By William Somervile, Esq. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by T. Cooper, 1735). <Link to 3rd ed. of 1735 in ECCO>
Text from The Chace. A Poem. To Which Is Added, Hobbinol, or the Rural Games: a Burlesque Poem, in Blank Verse. By William Somervile, Esq. 4th ed. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by M. Cooper at the Globe in Pater-Noster-Row, 1749). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
See also The Chace. A Poem. By William Somervile, Esq. (London: Printed for G. Hawkins, and sold by T. Cooper, 1735). <Link to 3rd ed. of 1735 in ECCO>
Date of Entry
10/25/2013
