Love

Love me or not, love her I must or die

by Thomas Campion 1567–1620

From The Fourth Book of Airs (c. 1617)

Love

Love me or not, love her I must or die;
Leave me or not, follow her, needs must I.
O that her grace would my wished comforts give!
How rich in her, how happy should I live!

All my desire, all my delight should be,
Her to enjoy, her to unite to me.
Envy should cease, her would I love alone:
Who loves by looks, is seldom true to one.

Could I enchant, and that it lawful were,
Her would I charm softly that none should hear.
But love enforced rarely yields firm content;
So would I love that neither should repent.

✦ ✦ ✦

The Fourth Book of Airs (c. 1617)

MLA

Campion, Thomas. “Love me or not, love her I must or die.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/campion/106/.

Chicago

Campion, Thomas. “Love me or not, love her I must or die.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/campion/106/.

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