Classic Poem

Still , still I love thee; Hope no more,
'Tis true, may light my dungeon's gloom,
And youth as well as hope is o'er,
Both buried in a living tomb;
And even reason doth forsake me,
So oft that I begin to fear
If not the madman they would make me,
Its utter loss is ever near;
Yet fettered in this hideous cell,
And banned and barred from those sweet eyes,
Unknowing if one memory dwell
With thee of him who daily dies,—
Still, Leonora, still alone to thee
Beneath their shackles still untamably
Love's pulses beat as if my limbs were free.

Go tell thy brother though the infectious breath
Of my rank prison may be steeped in death,
Though through my veins corrupting now may steal
The accursed taint which day by day I feel
Poisoning life's tabernacle, regret
For having loved thee, Leonora, never yet,
In spite of all I've borne or yet may bear,
Hath wrung one craven tear from my despair.
And thou—thou who from him who'd do and dare,
And suffer all of anguish heart can feel
Thou who in beauty's pride did shrink to hear
The love that lips could only half reveal;
Blushing, ashamed, because thou wert so dear
To one thy kinsman cared not to approve,—
Thou, Leonora, when I am no more,
Shalt feel the influence of a poet's love;
In every land my story they'll deplore,
Pilgrims from all shall make my grave their shrine,
And each who breathes my name shall murmur thine.