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by Charlotte Turner (1749 - 1806)

To the Insect of the Gossamer
Language: English 
Choose for Diff
Small, viewless aeronaut, that by the line
    Of Gossamer suspended, in mid air
    Float'st on a sun beam—Living Atom, where
Ends thy breeze-guided voyage;—with what design,
    In Æther dost thou launch thy form minute,
Mocking the eye?—Alas! before the veil
    Of denser clouds shall hide thee, the pursuit
Of the keen Swift may end thy fairy sail!—
    Thus on the golden thread that Fancy weaves
Buoyant, as Hope's illusive flattery breathes,
    The young and visionary Poet leaves
Life's dull realities, while sevenfold wreaths
    Of rainbow-light around his head revolve.
    Ah! soon at Sorrow's touch the radiant dreams dissolve!

Confirmed with Charlotte Smith, Elegiac Sonnets, and Other Poems, Volume 2, The Second Edition, 1800, p.18


Text Authorship:

  • by Charlotte Turner (1749 - 1806), "To the Insect of the Gossamer", appears in Elegiac Sonnets, and Other Poems, no. 77 [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 Helen Caddick (b. 1969), "To the Insect of the Gossamer", 2026 [ satb chorus and piano ], Composers Edition
        Publisher: Composers Edition [external link]  [sung text not yet checked]

Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2026-08-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 98

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