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John Gay
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First lines
John Gay
(1685–1732)
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Poem titles
First lines
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Biography
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A
A fox, in life’s extreme decay
A gard’ner, of peculiar taste
A juggler long through all the town
A lion, tired with state affairs
A Monkey, to reform the times
A pin, who long had served a beauty
A rake, by every passion ruled
A sneaking cur, the master’s spy
A spaniel, bred with all the care
A wolf, with hunger fierce and bold
Accept, young Prince, the moral lay
Against an elm a sheep was tied
All in the Downs the fleet was moor’d
All upstarts insolent in place
An owl of grave deport and mien
As a young stag the thicket pass’d
As Cupid in Cythera’s grove
As Jupiter’s all-seeing eye
B
Begin, my lord, in early youth
C
Consider man in every sphere
Conversing with your sprightly boys
D
Death, on a solemn night of state
E
Ere I begin, I must premise
F
Friendship, like love, is but a name
G
Give me a son! The blessing sent
H
Hail, happy land, whose fertile grounds
Have you a friend (look round and spy)
How fond are men of rule and place
How many saucy airs we meet
I
I grant corruption sways mankind
I hate the man who builds his name
I know you lawyers can with ease
Impertinence at first is borne
In beauty faults conspicuous grow
In other men we faults can spy
Is there a bard whom genius fires
Is there no hope? the sick man said
L
Laura, methinks you’re over nice
Lest men suspect your tale untrue
O
Of all the burdens man must bear
P
Pythag’ras rose at early dawn
R
Remote from cities lived a swain
Restrain your child; you’ll soon believe
S
Seek you to train your fav’rite boy?
Soon as your father’s death was known
T
That man must daily wiser grow
The husband thus reproved his wife
The lad of all-sufficient merit
The learned, full of inward pride
The man of pure and simple heart
The man to Jove his suit preferred
The man who, with undaunted toils
The ranging dog the stubble tries
The rats by night such mischief did
The sage, awaked at early day
The wind was high, the window shakes
Those who in quarrels interpose
Though Courts the practice disallow
Tis certain, that the modish passions
Twas when the seas were roaring
Two formal owls together sat
U
Upon a time a neighing steed
W
We frequently misplace esteem
What whispers must the beauty bear!
Whene’er a courtier’s out of place
Whether on earth, in air, or main
Who friendship with a knave hath made
Why are those tears? why droops your head?
Y
You tell me, that you apprehend