by Edwin Markham (1852 - 1940)
Defeat may serve as well as victory
Language: English
Defeat may serve as well as victory To shake the soul and let the glory out. When the great oak is straining in the wind, The boughs drink in new beauty, and the trunk Sends down a deeper root on the windward side. Only the soul that knows the mighty grief Can know the mighty rapture. Sorrows come To stretch out spaces in the heart for joy.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Edwin Markham, Victory in Defeat, in: Bible Review, Volume 8, 1910, p.117
Text Authorship:
- by Edwin Markham (1852 - 1940), "Victory in Defeat", appears in Nautilus [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Lillian Evanti (1890 - 1967), "The Mighty Rapture", copyright © 1943 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2026-01-25
Line count: 9
Word count: 67