To a Lady, on Being Asked
My Reasons For Quitting England In The Spring
To a Lady, on Being Asked - meaning Summary
Memory Eased by Distance
Byron likens his departure to Adam’s exile: remaining near the beloved would constantly revive past longings and tempt him back into an unattainable paradise. Travel and separation become a deliberate remedy, allowing him to bear sorrow, sigh briefly, and find relief in busier, distant scenes. The poem argues that wise flight from temptation preserves self-control and prevents the painful desire to return to what cannot be possessed.
Read Complete AnalysesWhen Man, expell’d from Eden’s bowers, A moment linger’d near the gate, Each scene recall’d the vanish’d hours, And bade him curse his future fate. But, wandering on through distant climes, He learnt to bear his load of grief; Just gave a sigh to other times, And found in busier scenes relief. Thus, lady! will it be with me, And I must view thy charms no more; For, while I linger near to thee, I sigh for ail I knew before. In flight I shall be surely wise, Escaping from temptation’s snare; I cannot view my paradise Without the wish of dwelling there.
December 2, 1808
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