Living

Hang Sorrow and Cast Away Care

by James Shirley 1596–1666

From Lyrics from the Dramatists of the Elizabethan Age, ed. A. H. Bullen (London: Nimmo, 1889)

Living

I neither will lend nor borrow,
Old age will be here to-morrow;
This pleasure we are made for,
When death comes all is paid for:
No matter what's the bill of fare,
I'll take my cup, I'll take no care.

Be wise, and say you had warning,
To laugh is better than learning;
To wear no clothes, not neat is;

But hunger is good where meat is:
Give me wine, give me a wench,
And let her parrot talk in French.

It is a match worth the making,
To keep the merry-thought waking;
A song is better than fasting,
And sorrow's not worth the tasting:
Then keep your brain light as you can,
An ounce of care will kill a man.

MLA

Shirley, James. “Hang Sorrow and Cast Away Care.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/shirley/8/.

Chicago

Shirley, James. “Hang Sorrow and Cast Away Care.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/shirley/8/.

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