Matthew Arnold

Hark! ah, the nightingale--
The tawny-throated!
Hark from that moonlit cedar what a burst!
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Hark! ah, the nightingale--
The tawny-throated!
Hark from that moonlit cedar what a burst!
What triumph! hark!--what pain!
. . . .
Again--thou hearest?
Eternal passion!
Eternal pain!

The pursuit of perfection, then, is the pursuit of sweetness and light.

The pursuit of perfection, then, is the pursuit of sweetness and light.

What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls
a butterfly.

What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls
a butterfly.

Odin, thou whirlwind, what a threat is this
Thou threatenest what transcends thy might, even thine,
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Odin, thou whirlwind, what a threat is this
Thou threatenest what transcends thy might, even thine,
For of all powers the mightiest far art thou,
Lord over men on earth, and Gods in Heaven;
Yet even from thee thyself hath been withheld
One thing--to undo what thou thyself hast ruled.

One thing only has been lent to youth and age in common--discontent.

One thing only has been lent to youth and age in common--discontent.