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[Alcaic Ode]


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[Alcaic Ode]


In the Book at the Grande Chartreuse
among the Mountains of Dauphiné.

1 O Tu, severi relligio loci,
2 Quocunque gaudes nomine (non leve
3     Nativa nam certe fluenta
4         Numen habet, veteresque sylvas;
5 Praesentiorem et conspicimus Deum
6 Per invias rupes, fera per juga,
7     Clivosque praeruptos, sonantes
8         Inter aquas, nemorumque noctem;
9 Quam si repostus sub trabe citrea
10 Fulgeret auro, et Phidiaca manu)
11     Salve vocanti rite, fesso et
12         Da placidam juveni quietem.
13 Quod si invidendis sedibus, et frui
14 Fortuna sacra lege silentii
15     Vetat volentem, me resorbens
16         In medios violenta fluctus:
17 Saltem remoto des, Pater, angulo
18 Horas senectae ducere liberas;
19     Tutumque vulgari tumultu
20         Surripias, hominumque curis.

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0 [Alcaic Ode] 2 Explanatory

Title/Paratext] "In the letter to West [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"In the letter to West in which Gray sent the fragment on the "Gaurus," he says—"There was a certain little ode set out from Rome, in a letter of recommendation to you, but possibly fell into the enemies' hands, for I never heard of its arrival. It is a little impertinent to inquire after its welfare, but you that are a father, will excuse a parent's foolish fondness."
    Stephen Jones gives two translations in verse of this, one by "a gentleman of Sunderland," and the other by Mr. Seward,—the latter appeared in the "European Magazine" for 1791. It was also translated by Walpole ("Works" iv. p. 454), and by Samuel Rogers."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 281.

Title/Paratext] "[Prose translation by J. R. [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"[Prose translation by J. R. Hendrickson:]
"Alcaic Ode"

    O Thou, Holy Spirit of this stern place, what name soever pleases Thee (for surely it is no insignificant divinity that holds sway over untamed streams and ancient forests; and surely, too, we behold God nearer to us, a living presence, amid pathless steeps, wild mountain ridges and precipitous cliffs, and among roaring torrents and the nocturnal gloom of sacred groves than if He were confined under beams of citron and gleaming with gold wrought by the hand of Phidias)—hail to Thee! And if I invoke Thy name aright, grant to a youth already weary calm and peaceful rest.
    But if Fortune now forbids me to enjoy this enviable dwelling and the sacred rule of silence, despite my wish, sucking me back with violence into the midst of the waves, at least, Father, grant that I may spend the hours of my old age free of care in some secluded corner; carry me off in safety from the tumult of the mob and the anxieties of men."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 151-152.

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In the Book at the Grande Chartreuse
among the Mountains of Dauphiné.

1 O Tu, severi relligio loci,
2 Quocunque gaudes nomine (non leve
3     Nativa nam certe fluenta
4         Numen habet, veteresque sylvas;
5 Praesentiorem et conspicimus Deum
6 Per invias rupes, fera per juga,
7     Clivosque praeruptos, sonantes
8         Inter aquas, nemorumque noctem;
9 Quam si repostus sub trabe citrea
10 Fulgeret auro, et Phidiaca manu)
11     Salve vocanti rite, fesso et
12         Da placidam juveni quietem.
13 Quod si invidendis sedibus, et frui
14 Fortuna sacra lege silentii
15     Vetat volentem, me resorbens
16         In medios violenta fluctus:
17 Saltem remoto des, Pater, angulo
18 Horas senectae ducere liberas;
19     Tutumque vulgari tumultu
20         Surripias, hominumque curis.

Works cited

  • The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891.
  • The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966.

Contractions, italics and initial capitalization have been largely eliminated, except where of real import. Initial letters of sentences have been capitalized, all accents have been removed. The editor would like to express his gratitude to library staff at Pembroke College, Cambridge, at the British Library, and at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, for their invaluable assistance.

About this text

  • Composition: 1741
  • Publication: 1775
  • Base text: Commonplace Book
  • Metre: Aeolic
  • Stanza: Alcaic
  • Genre: Alcaic ode
  • Finding Aid: MS witnesses
  • Notes/Queries: 2
  • Source: TEI/XML

Editions in the Digital Library

  • 1775: The Poems of Mr. Gray. To which are prefixed Memoirs of his Life and Writings by W[illiam]. Mason. York, 1775.
  • 1775: The Latin Odes of Mr. Gray, in English verse, with An Ode on the Death of a favorite Spaniel [by E. B. G.] London, 1775.
  • 1799: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray, LL.B. London, 1799.
  • 1800: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray, LL.B. London, 1800.
  • 1800: The Poems of Gray. A new edition. London, 1800.
  • 1814: The Works of Thomas Gray, Vol. I. Ed. Thomas James Mathias. London, 1814.
  • 1816: The Works of Thomas Gray, Vol. I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1816.
  • 1826: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray. London, 1826.
  • 1836: The Works of Thomas Gray, Volume I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1836.