Synthesized answer
The provided passages explore profound human connection through the lens of both presence and absence, though they do not explicitly name an "opening poem" or connect to a work titled "Ultimate Nothingness."
"A Confession" highlights a connection where one individual's presence was a source of purity, youth, and beauty for the speaker. The speaker's soul could be filled with "clear Deep draughts of purity" from this person, and their "flame of youth" lit through their eyes, warding off "winter from my skies" [1]. The speaker also drew "the sunshine of my days" and weighed their joy by the other's happiness, finding their debts paid by their "sweetness" and their heart's silence made into a "lovely melody" [1]. This poem invites a reader to experience the profound comfort and enrichment derived from a deeply valued, present connection.
In contrast, passages [4] and [5] delve into the emotional journey of absence following a devastating loss. The speaker feels "stabbed me with this poisoned blade / Of silence" and dropped "in the void / Without a word or sign" [4]. This absence is experienced as a profound cutting "deep, deep, into / The very essence of me" [4]. The finality of…
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From the book
← The Draught of Life Poems by Agnes Louisa Storrie A Confession I'll Explain → 4516514 Poems — A Confession Agnes Louisa Storrie A Confession. You did not know, how could you, dear, How much you stood for? Life in you Retained its touch of Eden dew, And ever, through the droughtiest year, My soul could bring her flagon here And fill it to the brim with clear Deep draughts of purity. And time could never quench the flame Of youth, that lit me through your eyes, And cozened winter from my skies Through all the years that went and came. You did not know I used your name To conjure by, and…
ng presence grows Into my being, and I feel, I know—O! God!—I see Across the barriers of sense, and through its mystery. Now may the empty world revolve, and clay reclaim its clay, Now may the processes of time pursue their destined way, For, like a flash that stabs the gloom when the storm is at its height, My spirit in her agony has glimpsed a heavenly light, No more am I the fettered slave of my humanity, The secret of the Universe has been revealed to me.
ever without answer. Life and love Still surge within my heart, and on my lips, And his are sealed to silence and decay. And when thyself with shining foot shall pass— Turn down—turn down—turn down—an empty glass. [ Falls fainting. ]
this empty world If still I reigned imperially to him Ah! that is where it cuts deep, deep, into The very essence of me. It has come, The blight my prescience saw while yet the flower Ravished my senses with its matchless bloom. Illicit love holds at its very core The canker that destroys it, and, Oh! well I knew within the kernel of my mind That I should some day pay a bitter price For these dear dreams. Only to think of them Will sanctify the Hades still to come. Hades? ah! A woman scorned —— — Yes, let her tell of Hades, she who knows. To leave me thus—Oh, coward blow! Tear out my…
d home and wealth—and I— Now God be merciful to me again, And send some power to strengthen me. I know That I am helped. My heart is lighter now Than it has been for weeks. My thoughts are clear, And I dare face them. Over my dead self My foot steps firmly. Now 'tis time to see My patient. Three o'clock! quite early yet, And still he sleeps. I shall not waken him. Five minutes more and 'twill be time to give The ten drops as directed. Quietly He still sleeps on. I'll kiss him once good-night. [ Turns to bed. ] "Oh dearer, dearer than the ruddy drops That visit my sad heart —— —"But what?…
More questions about this book
- Select one potent metaphor from the opening poem (e.g., "a string is snapped") and one from "A Confession" (e.g., "Life in you Retained its touch of Eden dew"). Explain the literal image each creates and the deeper emotional or philosophical concept it conveys, as if simplifying it for someone new to poetry.
- In "A Confession," the speaker repeatedly emphasizes "You did not know." What is the emotional impact of this repeated phrase on the poem's tone, and what does it suggest about the nature of the relationship described and the speaker's own inner world?
- Consider "A December Posy" in conjunction with the other two poems. How do its themes of nature, season, and unspoken words complement or contrast with the more direct expressions of grief and profound personal influence found in the first two poems, enriching Storrie's overall thematic landscape?
- If you were to characterize Agnes Louisa Storrie's poetic voice and primary thematic concerns based solely on these three excerpts, what would you highlight as her most distinctive qualities, and how do specific literary choices (e.g., imagery, tone, structure) contribute to establishing that voice?