Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon

Irish poet 1637-1685

Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon (c. 163318 January 1685), English poet, was born in Ireland about 1630. He was a nephew of Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, and was educated partly under a tutor at his uncle's seat in Yorkshire, partly at Caen in Normandy and partly at Rome.

Choose an author as you choose a friend.

Quotes

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  • My God, my Father, and my Friend,
    Do not forsake me at my end.
    • Translation of Dies Iræ.

Essay on Translated Verse (1684)

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  • Remember Milo's end,
    Wedged in that timber which he strove to rend.
    • Line 87.
  • Then, seek a poet who your way does bend,
    And choose an author as you choose a friend;
    United by this sympathetic bond,
    You grow familiar, intimate and fond;
    Your thoughts, your words, your styles, your souls agree,
    No longer his interpreter, but he.
    • Line 95.
  • Immodest words admit of no defence,
    For want of decency is want of sense.
    • Line 113.
  • Hail mighty Maro! may that sacred name
    Kindle my breast with thy celestial flame;
    Sublime ideas and apt words infuse,
    The Muse instruct my voice, and thou inspire the Muse!
    • Line 173.
  • Take pains the genuine meaning to explore,
    There sweat, there strain, tug the laborious oar;
    Search every comment that your care can find,
    Some here, some there, may hit the poet's mind.
    • Line 179.
  • The multitude is always in the wrong.
    • Line 184.
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