On The Aphorism Poem by Charlotte Smith

On The Aphorism

Rating: 2.8


'L'Amitié est l'Amour sans ailes.'
FRIENDSHIP, as some sage poet sings,
Is chasten'd Love, depriv'd of wings,
Without all wish or power to wander;
Less volatile, but not less tender:
Yet says the proverbs­'Sly and slow
'Love creeps, even where he cannot go;'
To clip his pinions then is vain,
His old propensities remain;

And she, who years beyond fifteen,
Has counted twenty, may have seen
How rarely unplum'd Love will stay;
He flies not­but he coolly walks away.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Edward Kofi Louis 29 April 2018

'Love creeps, even where he cannot go'! Thanks for sharing.

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Bernard F. Asuncion 29 April 2018

Such a great write by Charlotte Smith👍👍👍

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Subhas Chandra Chakra 29 April 2018

I loved this stanza so much..To quote And she, who years beyond fifteen, Has counted twenty, may have seen How rarely unplum'd Love will stay; He flies not­but he coolly walks away. Thanks for the sharing.

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Rks Yadav 29 April 2018

beautifully felt and penned

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Henry Tong 29 April 2018

However, the genius of this poem lies on the second stanza, as the interaction between He and She becomes unclear and intertwined- the poet doesn't give a clear hint of how rarely unplumed love will stay, but instead suggests many alternatives leaving the audience an open end of story.

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Henry Tong 29 April 2018

Intimacy, Passion and Commitment are three quintessential factors of Loving. Here, the poet differentiates liking and loving in that liking is constituted of intimacy only, but loving needs to be satisfied all of three.

1 0 Reply
Marieta Maglas 29 April 2018

In this poem as in many others, the aphorisms are didactic and instructive. Like Anne Carson, Suzanne Buffam, Chelsey Minnis, or Elizabeth Willis, Charlotte Smith uses the lyric aphorism to explain a model of logic, an accumulative one. beautiful poem. Voted 10.

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