by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861)
Question and Answer
Language: English
Love you seek for, presupposes Summer heat and sunny glow. Tell me, do you find moss-roses Budding, blooming in the snow? Snow might kill the rose-tree's root -- Shake it quickly from your foot, Lest it harm you as you go. From the ivy where it dapples A grey ruin, stone by stone, Do you look for grapes or apples, Or for sad green leaves alone? Pluck the leaves off, two or three -- Keep them for morality When you shall be safe and gone.
Text Authorship:
- by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), "Question and Answer", appears in Poems, 4th edition, volume III, first published 1856 [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 Mary Eleanor Ponssen , "Question and Answer", <<1900 [ high voice and piano ], London: Henry Davison [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-04-21
Line count: 14
Word count: 83