Love's Philosophy

The fountains mingle with the river,
And the rivers with the ocean;
The winds of heaven mix for ever,
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one another's being mingle: —
Why not I with thine?

See, the mountains kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister flower would be forgiven
If it disdain'd its brother:
And the sunlight clasps the earth,
And the moonbeams kiss the sea: —
What is all this sweet work worth,
If thou kiss not me?

Footnotes

  1. Until here, the sensuousness of the unions was only implied. This small word lies to rest any doubt of the speaker’s sexual intent.

    — Allegra Keys, Owl Eyes Editor

  2. The speaker, up until this point, speaks in general and broad terms. It is here that readers learn the stakes of the poem are personal. This poem is a seduction.

    — Allegra Keys, Owl Eyes Editor

  3. This is the crux of the argument: everything and everyone is a part of a pair, and it is out of one’s control.

    — Allegra Keys, Owl Eyes Editor

  4. Here, the speaker takes the metaphor and applies it to the earth and a completely different realm. This helps further the argument that coming together is natural everywhere. Also, it can't be wrong if it occurs in heaven as well.

    — Allegra Keys, Owl Eyes Editor

  5. The first two lines of the poem establish the extended metaphor of nature’s union. Personification is used here and throughout the poem as a persuasion technique.

    — Allegra Keys, Owl Eyes Editor