Alexander Pope(1688–1744)
Impromptu
To Lady Winchelsea,
Occasioned by four Satirical Verses on WomenWits,
In The Rape of the Lock9
In vain you boast poetic n a m e s of yore,
And cite those Sapphos we admire no more:1
Fate d o o m e d the fall of every female wit;
But d o o m e d it then, w h e n first Ardelia2 writ.
Of all examples by the world confessed,
I knew Ardelia could not quote the best;
W h o , like her mistress on Britannia's throne,
Fights and subdues in quarrels not her own.3
To write their praise you but in vain essay;
) Even while you write, you take that praise away.
Light to the stars the sun does thus restore,
But shines himself till they are seen no more.
ca. 17151741