Fragment

John Clare

The cataract whirling down the precipice,
Elbows down rocks and, shouldering, thunders through.
Roars, howls, and stifled murmurs never cease;
Hell and its agonies seem hide below.
Thick rolls the mist, that smokes and falls in dew;
The trees and greenwood wear the deepest green.
Horrible mysteries in the gulph stare through,
Roars of a million tongues, and none knows what they mean.

This poem is in the public domain.

About This Poem

“Fragment” was published in John Clare Poems (Richard Cobden-Sanderson, 1920).

John Clare was born on July 13, 1793, in Northamptonshire, England. His books include Poems Descriptive of Rural Life and Scenery (Taylor and Hessey, 1820) and The Village Minstrel and Other Poems (Taylor and Hessey, 1821). He died on May 20, 1864.

Poetry by Clare

Selected Poems

(Penguin Classics, 2004)

"A Grave" by Marianne Moore

"The Present/" by Lisa Robertson

"Jellyfish" by David Lau

August Guest Editor: Evie Shockley

Thanks to Evie Shockley, author of semiautomatic (Wesleyan University Press, 2017), who curated Poem-a-Day this month. Read more about Shockley and our guest editors for the year.

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August 18, 2018