Love
Vita Nuova: 'Love hath so long possessed me for his own'
Translated by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1861; text of the Ellis and Elvey edition, 1899) · From La Vita Nuova
Love hath so long possessed me for his own
And made his lordship so familiar
That he, who at first irked me, is now grown
Unto my heart as its best secrets are.
And thus, when he in such sore wise doth mar
My life that all its strength seems gone from it,
Mine inmost being then feels throughly quit
Of anguish, and all evil keeps afar.
Love also gathers to such power in me
That my sighs speak, each one a grievous thing,
Always soliciting
My lady’s salutation piteously.
Whenever she beholds me, it is so,
Who is more sweet than any words can show.
Cite this poem
MLA
Dante Alighieri. “Vita Nuova: 'Love hath so long possessed me for his own'.” Translated by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/dante/19/.
Chicago
Dante Alighieri. “Vita Nuova: 'Love hath so long possessed me for his own'.” Translated by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/dante/19/.
Read this poem with the Codex →