Against Unworthy Praise
Against Unworthy Praise - meaning Summary
Private Praise Over Public Acclaim
The poem argues that private approval from a cherished woman matters more than public praise. Addressing his heart, the speaker refuses validation from "knave" or "dolt," valuing instead a shared creative bond and the renewal of strength it brings. He acknowledges the woman's misunderstood, labyrinthine life and the slander she endures, yet emphasizes her calm dignity—part lion, part child—whose inner peace renders external praise unnecessary.
Read Complete AnalysesO heart, be at peace, because Nor knave nor dolt can break What's not for their applause, Being for a woman's sake. Enough if the work has seemed, So did she your strength renew, A dream that a lion had dreamed Till the wilderness cried aloud, A secret between you two, Between the proud and the proud. What, still you would have their praise! But here's a haughtier text, The labyrinth of her days That her own strangeness perplexed; And how what her dreaming gave Earned slander, ingratitude, From self-same dolt and knave; Aye, and worse wrong than these. Yet she, singing upon her road, Half lion, half child, is at peace.
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