An Ode, Written October, 1819, before the Spania
The speaker urges people denied bread and bound in chains to mourn their slain relatives, rise against tyranny, and fight in defence of Freedom. The appeal praises suffering and action, calls for victory over their own revenge, pride, and power, and urges them to cover bloodstains with wreaths of violet, ivy, and pine.
By Percy Bysshe Shelley · First published 1819 · Genre: Ode, Political Poetry · 381 words
First lines
Arise, arise, arise! / There is blood on the earth that denies ye bread; / Be your wounds like eyes / To weep for the dead, the dead, the dead. / What other grief were it just to pay? / Your sons, your wives, your brethren, were they; / Who said they were slain on the battle day?
Awaken, awaken, awaken! / The slave and the tyrant are twin-born foes; / Be the cold chains shaken / To the dust where your kindred repose, repose: / Their bones in the grave will start and move, / When they hear the voices of those they love, / Most loud in the holy combat above.
Genres
- Ode — Five stanzas address the oppressed with repeated exhortations and praise those who have suffered and acted.
- Political Poetry — The verses oppose slavery and tyranny, demand the shaking off of chains, and urge combat in defence of Freedom.
Tags
liberty · tyranny · resistance · mourning · self-mastery · ode
What this Textopian page supports
An Ode, Written October, 1819, before the Spaniards had Recovered their Liberty is listed on Textopian as a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, dated 1819 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Percy Bysshe Shelley
- Date: 1819 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Ode, Political Poetry
- Length: 381 words
- Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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