The Complete Poetry of Percy Bysshe Shelley

Ten Early Poems (1809–1814)

Text of “Oh wretched mortal, hard thy fate!” written in a notebook belonging to Thomas Jefferson Hogg while a student at Oxford. With kind permission of The Carl H. Pforzheimer Collection of Shelley and His Circle, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations. This page intentionally left blank Ten Early Poems (1809–1814) The following ten short poems by PBS some of which may be excerpts from poems otherwise lost were written and released between 1809 or early 1810 and March 1814 but were never later revised for publication. They are drawn from manuscripts letters, notebooks, and a copy by his sister that preserve the scattered survivors of a larger body of poetry that PBS undoubtedly wrote and either handed or mailed to members of his circle before his elopement with Mary W. Godwin (MWS) on 27 July 1814. PBS collected and revised a number of such poems, which he copied into The Esdaile Notebook (Esd) between 1812 and 1814, and in Volume II of CPPBS the privately released texts of those poems will be discussed and collated with the revised texts in Esd. The ten poems below, however, are ones that PBS either lost track of by 1812, did not choose to include in the Esd collection, or composed after he had abandoned Esd. As usual, we collate the primary textual authorities for each poem at the bottom of the pages upon which the relevant text appears; in the Commentary (pages 295–329) we discuss the significance of each poem or fragment for PBS’s life, thought, and poetic development, provide factual annotation and information on the approximate date and the occasion of its composition , trace the provenance of its primary textual authorities and its textual history, and outline our editorial procedures with regard to it. Variants between our Texts and other significant editions appear on pages 411–28, among the Historical Collations. The poems are arranged in the order of their original private release, insofar as we can establish that sequence. 1. “A Cat in distress” 2. “How swiftly through Heaven’s wide expanse” 3. “Oh wretched mortal, hard thy fate!” 4. To Mary who died in this opinion 5. “Why is it said thou canst but live” 6. “As you will see I wrote to you” (1st letter to E. F. Graham) 7. “Dear dear dear dear dear dear Græme! (2nd letter to E. F. Graham) 8. “Sweet star! which gleaming oer the darksome scene” 9. “Bear witness Erin! when thine injured isle” 10. “Thy dewy looks sink in my breast” 133 This page intentionally left blank “A Cat in distress” 1. A Cat in distress Nothing more or less, Good folks I must faithfully tell ye, As I am a sinner It wants for some dinner 5 To stuff out its own little belly. 2. You migh’nt easily guess All the modes of distress Which torture the tenants of earth, And the various evils 10 Which like many devils Attend the poor dogs from their birth: 3. Some a living require And others desire An old fellow out of the way, 15 And which is the best I leave to be guessed For I cannot pretend to say. 4. One wants society T’other variety 20 Others a tranquil life; Some want food Others as good Only require a wife. “A Cat in distress” 135 Text collated with MS Pfz and SC/IV. Stanza marker. 1 ] omitted Pfz SC/IV 2 less, ] less Pfz SC/IV 3 ye, ] ye Pfz SC/IV 6 belly. ] belly Pfz SC/IV Stanza marker. 2. ] 2 Pfz SC/IV 9 earth, ] earth Pfz SC/IV 12 birth: ] birth Pfz SC/IV Stanza marker. 3. ] 3 Pfz SC/IV 15 way, ] way Pfz SC/IV 18 say. ] say Pfz SC/IV Stanza marker. 4. ] 4 Pfz SC/IV 20 T’other ] Tother Pfz SC/IV 21 life; ] life Pfz SC/IV 24 wife. ] wife Pfz SC/IV 5. But this poor little Cat 25 Only wanted a rat To stuff out its own little maw, And ’twere as good Had some people such food To make them hold their jaw. 30 “How swiftly through Heaven’s wide expanse” How swiftly through Heaven’s wide expanse Bright day’s resplendent colors fade, How sweetly does the moonbeam’s glance With silver...