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Given that you freely given me leave to love,
How will you respond?
Shall I your joy, or ardor arouse,
As I commence woo;
Will you distress, or mock, or love me too?

Every minor charm can disdain, and I
Despite your hate
Without your permission can observe, and die;
Grant a nobler Lot!
’Tis easy to destroy, you may fashion.

Then allow me leave to love, & adore me too
Lacking design
To uplift, as Love's damned defiers act
While complaining Bards whine,
Fame to their beauty, from their tearful gaze.

Grief is a pond and shows not bright
One's grace's lights;
Delights are pure currents, your vision appear
Morose in gloomier verses,
Through cheerfull verses they shine brilliant with acclaim.

Which may not refer to portray you fair
Harms, blazes, and shafts,
Gales in your forehead, traps in your hayr,
Suborning all your attributes,
Or to trick, or afflict trapped hearts.

I’ll cause your vision like sunrise suns look,
Like gentle, and fair;
Thy countenance as crystal smooth, and transparent,
Whereas your unkempt hair
Shall flow like a calm Region of the Atmosphere.

Abundant Nature’s store (which is the Bard's Treasure)
I’l use, to embellish
One's charms, if your Source of Pleasure
Through equal thankfulness
One but release, so we each other grace.

Examining the Verse's Motifs

The composition examines the relationship of affection and admiration, as the narrator engages with a maiden who seeks his love. Instead, he offers a reciprocal exchange of literary tribute for personal pleasures. This language is elegant, blending courtly norms with frank expressions of longing.

Within the stanzas, the writer rejects common tropes of unrequited love, including grief and weeping, claiming they obscure true beauty. He favors happiness and admiration to showcase the maiden's qualities, assuring to render her gaze as shining stars and her hair as flowing breeze. The method highlights a practical yet artful view on bonds.

Significant Components of the Composition

• Mutual Exchange: The poem focuses on a suggestion of tribute in return for delight, highlighting parity between the persons.
• Rejection of Conventional Ideas: The speaker condemns typical artistic tools like sorrow and similes of pain, choosing upbeat imagery.
• Artistic Skill: The application of varied verse patterns and flow showcases the author's proficiency in composition, forming a fluid and captivating text.

Abundant Nature’s treasury (which is the Poet’s Riches)
I’l use, to dress
One's beauties, if your Mine of Pleasure
In matching appreciation
You but release, so we one another grace.

The stanza encapsulates the core bargain, in which the writer pledges to use his artistic abilities to praise the maiden, in return for her receptiveness. This phraseology blends spiritual hints with physical longings, giving depth to the verse's theme.