A Canto a Day 6: Samuel Daniel

Samuel Daniel: Delia 38 (1592)

When men shall find thy flower, thy glory pass,
And thou with careful brow sitting alone
Receiv'd hast this message from thy glass,
That tells the truth, and says that all is gone;
Fresh shalt thou see in me the wounds thou madest
Though spent thy flame, in me the heat remaining:
I that hath lov'd thee thus before thou fadest,
My faith shall waxe, while thou art in thy waning.
The world shall find this miracle in me,
That fire can burn, when all the matter's spent:
Then what my faith hath been thy self shalt see,
And that thou was unkind thou mayst repent.
Thou mayst repent that thou hast scorn'd my tears,
When winter snows upon thy golden hairs.

I had never heard of Samuel Daniel before. This sonnet is so Shakepearian in themes and diction that it's surprising to find that it predates the better known - and obviously better - works. The editors of The Art of the Sonnet are kind to this poem, finding more subtlety in it that I do. They argue that the poem ends in kindness towards the ungrateful beloved, and so rises above the more usual game of blame and defensiveness. I'm not convinced.