by Robert Browning (1812 - 1889)
A simple ring with a single stone
Language: English
A simple ring with a single stone,
To the vulgar eye no stone of price:
Whisper the right word, that alone --
Forth starts a sprite, like fire from ice,
And lo, you are lord (says an Eastern scroll)
Of heaven and earth, lord whole and sole
Through the power in a pearl.
A woman ('tis I this time that say)
With little the world counts worthy praise
Utter the true word -- out and away
Escapes her soul: I am wrapt in blaze,
Creation's lord, of heaven and earth
Lord whole and sole -- by a minute's birth --
Through the love in a girl!
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Robert Browning (1812 - 1889), "A pearl, a girl", appears in Asolando: Fancies and Facts, first published 1889 [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 Granville Ransome Bantock, Sir (1868 - 1946), "A pearl, a girl", 1920, published 1921 [ voice and piano ], from Dramatic Lyrics Set II, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by George Waring Stebbins (1869 - 1930), "The heart of a pearl" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Richard Flatter) , "Zauberkraft", appears in Die Fähre, Englische Lyrik aus fünf Jahrhunderten, first published 1936
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-02-26
Line count: 14
Word count: 102