RAPTURE -- TO LAURA

by: Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805)

ROM earth I seem to wing my flight,

And sun myself in Heaven's pure light,

When thy sweet gaze meets mine

I dream I quaff ethereal dew,

When mine own form I mirror'd view

In those blue eyes divine!

 

Blest notes from Paradise afar,

Or strains from some benignant star

Enchant my ravish'd ear;

My Muse feels then the shepherd's hour

When silv'ry tones of magic power

Escape those lips so dear!

 

Young Loves around thee fan their wings --

Behind, the madden'd fir-tree springs,

As when by Orpheus fir'd;

The poles whirl round with swifter motion,

When in the dance, like waves o'er Ocean,

Thy footsteps float untir'd!

 

Thy look, if it but beam with love,

Could make the lifeless marble move,

And hearts in rocks enshrine;

My visions to reality

Will turn, if, Laura, in thine eye

I read -- that thou art mine!

• Death of Schiller - An account of the death of the German dramatist.
• Friedrich Schiller - A biography of the German dramatist.
• Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) - A biography of the German dramatist, plus links to purchase all of his works currently in print.
• Goethe's Intercourse with Schiller - An account of Goethe's friendship with the dramatist Friedrich Schiller.
• Poems by 18th Century Dramatists - An index of poems by some of the greatest dramatists of the eighteenth century.
• Purchase books by Friedrich Schiller