What if a day, or a month, or a yeare? | What if a day, or a month, or a yeare

by Anonymous / Unidentified Author and sometimes misattributed to Thomas Campion (1567 - 1620)

What if a day, or a month, or a yeare?

Language: English

Our translations: ITA

What if a day, or a month, or a yeare
Crown thy delights with a thousand sweet contentings?
Cannot a chance of a night or an howre
Crosse thy desires with as many sad tormentings?
Fortune, honor, beauty, youth
Are but blossoms dying;
Wanton pleasure, doating love,
Are but shadowes flying.
All our joyes are but toyes,
Idle thoughts deceiving;
None have power of an howre
In their lives bereaving.

Earthes but a point to the world, and a man
Is but a point to the worlds compared centure:
Shall then a point of a point be so vaine
As to triumph in a seely points adventure?
All is hassard that we have,
There is nothing biding;
Dayes of pleasure are like streames
Through faire meadowes gliding.
Weale and woe, time doth goe,
Time is ever turning:
Secret fates guide our states,
Both in mirth and mourning

Most likely misattributed to Campion, as discussed in A. E. H. Swan's 1907 paper "The Authorship of 'What if a Day,' and Its Various Versions" (Modern Philology, vol. 4, no. 3, Jan. 1907, pp. 397-422). Swan cites the first known appearance of the text in the Scottish Metrical Psalter, published in 1566 (one year before Campion was born), held by the British Museum (add. 33,933, fol. 81b)

Composition:

John Dowland

Text Authorship:

by Anonymous / Unidentified Author, no title, first published 1606
sometimes misattributed to Thomas Campion (1567 - 1620)

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

Research team for this page: Antonio Zencovich , Garrett Medlock [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2017-02-09
Line count: 24
Word count: 147