On the Sonnet
- by John Keats (1819)
- If by dull rhymes our English must be chained,
- And, like Andromeda, the Sonnet sweet
- Fettered, in spite of painéd loveliness;
- Let us find out, if we must be constrained,
- Sandals more interwoven and complete
- To fit the naked foot of poesy;
- Let us inspect the lyre, and weigh the stress
- Of every chord, and see what may be gained
- By ear industrious, and attention meet;
- Misers of sound and syllable, no less
- Than Midas of his coinage, let us be
- Jealous of dead leaves in the bay-wreath crown;
- So, if we may not let the Muse be free,
- She will be bound with garlands of her own.