Nancy Walsh

    I, without bite or sup,
        If thou wert fated for me,
    I would up
        And would go after thee
    Through mountains.

    A thousand thanks from me
        To God have gone,
    Because I have not lost my senses to thee,
    Though it was hardly I escaped from thee,
        O ringleted one!

James Stephens

James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet, whose literary output includes many retellings of Irish myths and fairy tales. He was born on February 9, 1880, and passed away on December 26, 1950. Notable works include 'The Crock of Gold' and 'The Demi-Gods'. Stephens also wrote several well-regarded collections of poetry, including 'The Hill of Vision' and 'Insurrections'. His work is characterized by a blend of myth, fantasy, and modernism, capturing the spirit and culture of Ireland.

James Stephens

The Red Man's Wife

James Stephens, Simple Poetry

From Hawk And Kite (The Rocky Road To Dublin)

James Stephens, Simple Poetry

The Gang

James Stephens, Simple Poetry

The Coral Island (The Adventures Of Seumas Beg)

James Stephens, Simple Poetry

English

Suggested Poems

Explore a curated selection of verses that share themes, styles, and emotional resonance with the poem you've just read.

Nancy Walsh

    It is not on her gown
    She fears to tread;
    It is her hair
    Which tumbles down
    And strays
    About her ways
    That she must care.

    And she lives nigh this place:
    The dead would rise
    If they could see her face;
    The dead would rise
    Only to hear her sing:
    But death is blind, and gives not ear nor eye
    To anything.

    We would leave behind
    Both wife and child,
    And house and home;
    And wander blind,
    And wander thus,
    And ever roam,
    If she would come to us
    In Erris.

    Softly she said to me,
    Be patient till the night comes,
    And I will go with thee.

James Stephens

Geoffrey Keating

    O woman full of wiliness!
        Although for love of me you pine,
    Withhold your hand adventurous,
        It holdeth nothing holding mine.

    Look on my head, how it is grey!
        My body's weakness doth appear;
    My blood is chill and thin; my day
        Is done, and there is nothing here.

    Do not call me a foolish man,
        Nor lean your lovely cheek to mine
    O slender witch, our bodies can
        Not mingle now, nor any time.

    So take your mouth from mine, your hand
        From mine, ah, take your lips away!
    Lest heat to will should ripen, and
        All this be grave that had been gay.

    It is this curl, a silken nest,
        And this grey eye bright as the dew,
    And this round, lo...

James Stephens

Nancy.

I.

    Thine am I, my faithful fair,
        Thine, my lovely Nancy;
    Ev'ry pulse along my veins,
        Ev'ry roving fancy.

II.

    To thy bosom lay my heart,
        There to throb and languish:
    Tho' despair had wrung its core,
        That would heal its anguish.

III.

    Take away those rosy lips,
        Rich with balmy treasure:
    Turn away thine eyes of love,
        Lest I die with pleasure.

IV.

    What is life when wanting love?
        Night without a morning:
    Love's the cloudless summer sun,
        Nature gay adorning.

Robert Burns

Nancy - A Song.

You ask me, dear Nancy, what makes me presume
That you cherish a secret affection for me?
When we see the Flow'rs bud, don't we look for the Bloom?
Then, sweetest, attend, while I answer to thee.

When we Young Men with pastimes the Twilight beguile,
I watch your plump cheek till it dimples with joy:
And observe, that whatever occasions the smile,
You give me a glance; but provokingly coy.

Last Month, when wild Strawberries pluckt in the Grove,
Like beads on the tall seeded grass you had strung;
You gave me the choicest; I hop'd 'twas for Love;
And I told you my hopes while the Nightingale sung.

Remember the Viper: - 'twas close at your feet;
How you started, and threw yourself into my arms;
Not a Strawberry there was so ripe nor so sweet
As the li...

Robert Bloomfield

Husband, Husband.

Tune - "Jo Janet."



I.

    Husband, husband, cease your strife,
        Nor longer idly rave, sir;
    Tho' I am your wedded wife,
        Yet I am not your slave, sir.
    "One of two must still obey,
        Nancy, Nancy;
    Is it man or woman, say,
        My spouse, Nancy?"

II.

    If 'tis still the lordly word,
        Service and obedience;
    I'll desert my sov'reign lord,
        And so, good bye, allegiance!
    "Sad will I be, so bereft,
        Nancy, Nancy;
    Yet I'll try to make a shift,
        My spouse, Nancy."

III.

    My poor heart then break it must,
        My last hour I'm near it:
    When you lay me in the dust,
        Think, think, how you will...

Robert Burns

Neglectful Edward.

        Nancy

"Edward back from the Indian Sea,
What have you brought for Nancy?"

        Edward

"A rope of pearls and a gold earring,
And a bird of the East that will not sing.
A carven tooth, a box with a key, "

        Nancy

"God be praised you are back," says she,
"Have you nothing more for your Nancy?"

        Edward

"Long as I sailed the Indian Sea
I gathered all for your fancy:
Toys and silk and jewels I bring,
And a bird of the East that will not sing:
What more can you want, dear girl, from me?"

        Nancy

"God be praised you are back," said she,
"Have you nothing better for Nancy?"

        Edward

"Safe and home from the Indian Sea,
And nothing to take your f...

Robert von Ranke Graves