A Coronal With His Songs And Her Days To His Lady And To Love

By Ernest Christopher Dowson

    Violets and leaves of vine,     Into a frail, fair wreath     We gather and entwine:     A wreath for Love to wear,     Fragrant as his own breath,     To crown his brow divine,     All day till night is near.     Violets and leaves of vine     We gather and entwine.     Violets and leaves of vine     For Love that lives a day,     We gather and entwine.     All day till Love is dead,     Till eve falls, cold and gray,     These blossoms, yours and mine,     Love wears upon his head,     Violets and leaves of vine     We gather and entwine.     Violets and leaves of vine,     For Love when poor Love dies     We gather and entwine.     This wreath that lives a day     Over his pale, cold eyes,     Kissed shut by Proserpine,     At set of sun we lay:     Violets and leaves of vine     We gather and entwine.

Share & Analyze This Poem

Spread the beauty of poetry or dive deeper into analysis

Analyze This Poem

Discover the literary devices, structure, and deeper meaning

Create Image

Transform this poem into a beautiful shareable image

Copy to Clipboard

Save this poem for personal use or sharing offline


Share the Love of Poetry

Poem Details

Language: English
Keywords: Public Domain
Source: Public Domain Collection
Rights/Permissions: Public Domain

Analysis & Notes:
This poem is a beautiful and melancholic meditation on love and death. **Form and Structure:** The poem is structured as a simple, repetitive song-like ballad. Each stanza is four lines long (a quatrain) with an AABB rhyme scheme. This repetition creates a hypnotic and cyclical effect, mirroring the eternal nature of love and death. **Imagery and Symbolism:** The poem is rich in imagery, particularly of nature. The violets and the vine symbolize love's fragility and fleeting beauty. The wreath, a symbol of celebration and honor, is also a symbol of mortality, as it is made from flowers that will eventually wither and die. The image of Proserpine, the Roman goddess of the underworld, reinforces the theme of death. **Theme:** The poem explores the bittersweet nature of love. Love is presented as both beautiful and fragile, capable of bringing joy and fulfillment but also pain and loss. The speaker acknowledges the inevitability of death but finds solace in the memory of love's enduring power. The repetition of the lines We gather and entwine emphasizes the cyclical nature of life, death, and rebirth. **Tone:** The tone of the poem is both elegiac and hopeful. There is a sense of mourning for the loss of love, but also a recognition that love's memory will endure. The poem's simplicity and repetition create a sense of calm and acceptance in the face of death. Let me know if you'd like me to elaborate on any of these points!

Exploring Narrative Poetry

Narrative poetry is a form of poetry that tells a story, often making use of the voices of a narrator and characters as well. Unlike lyric poetry, which focuses on emotions and thoughts, narrative poetry is dedicated to storytelling, weaving tales that captivate readers through plot and character development.


Narrative poems are unique in their ability to combine the depth of storytelling with the expressive qualities of poetry. Here are some defining characteristics:

  • Structured Plot: Narrative poems typically have a clear beginning, middle, and end, following a plot that might involve conflict, climax, and resolution, much like a short story or novel.
  • Character Development: Characters in narrative poems are often well-developed, with distinct voices and personalities that drive the story forward.
  • Descriptive Language: The language used in narrative poetry is vivid and descriptive, painting a clear picture of the scenes and events, while also conveying the emotions and atmosphere of the story.

From ancient epics like "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey" to more modern narrative poems, this form continues to engage readers by blending the art of storytelling with the beauty and rhythm of poetry.