The Mind
Foreign Speech
From Poems (1914)
The Mind
Ah, do not tell me what they mean,
The tremulous brook, the scarcely stirred
June leaves, the hum of things unseen,
This sovran bird.
Do they say things so deep, and rare,
And perfect? I can only tell
That they are happy, and can bear
Such ignorance well;
Feeding on all things said and sung
From hour to hour in this high wood
Articulate in a strange, sweet tongue
Not understood.
✦ ✦ ✦
Codex Note
Dated 1868.
Cite this poem
MLA
Dowden, Edward. “Foreign Speech.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/dowden/50/.
Chicago
Dowden, Edward. “Foreign Speech.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/dowden/50/.
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