Margaret Cavendish on light and shadow

Of Shadow and Eccho

Pale Shadow once in Love fell with bright Light.
Which makes Her still walk always in His sight,
And when He's absent, then, poor Soul, she Dies,
But when He shows himself, Her Life revives.
She Sister is to Eccho loud and clear,
Whose voice is heard, no Body doth appear;
She hates to see or show Her self to men,
Unless Narcissus could rivive again:
But there two Souls (for they no Bodies have)
Do wander in theAir to see a Grave;
Silence would bury one, the other Night,
But was denied by Repercussion's spight;
And both are subject to the Eye and Ear;
For one we see, and the other we do hear.

So there's another piece from Colchester's finest export!

A science Lesson from Mad Madge

A World made by Atomes.

1653

SMall Atomes of themselves a World may make,
As being subtle, and of every shape:
And as they dance about, fit places finde,
Such Formes as best agree, make every kinde.
For when we build a house of Bricke, and Stone, [5]
We lay them even, every one by one:
And when we finde a gap that's big, or small,
We seeke out Stones, to fit that place withall.
For when not fit, too big, or little be,
They fall away, and cannot stay we see. [10]
So Atomes, as they dance, finde places fit,
They there remaine, lye close, and fast will sticke.
Those that unfit, the rest that rove about,
Do never leave, untill they thrust them out.
Thus by their severall Motions, and their Formes, [15]
As severall work-men serve each others turnes.
And thus, by chance, may a New World create:
Or else predestined to worke my Fate.

The joyning of severall Figur'd Atomesmake other Figures.

1653

Several Figur'd Atomes well agreeing,
When joyn'd do give another Figure being.
For as those Figures joyned, severall waies,
The Fabrick of each severall Creature raise

By Margaret Cavendish, the Duchess of Newcastle

Lots more of Mad Madge's 17th Century atom poems here

And now for some more Mad Madge

Again it's been a while since I posted a poem by 17th century Essex girl Margaret Cavendish (aka Mad Madge). Luckily for her posterity she was also the Duchess of Newcastle otherwise her great works may have been lost to the world. One of her favourite subjects was atomic theories. Here is a poem of hers dating back to 1652

The Bignesse of Atomes

MHEN I say Atomes small, as small can bee;
I mean Quantity, quality, and Weight agree
Not in the Figure, for some may shew
Much bigger, and some lesser: so
Take Water fluid, and Ice thats firme, [5]
Though the Weight be just the Bulke is not the same.
So Atomes are some soft, others more knit,
According as each Atome's Figured;
Round and Long Atomes hollow are, more slacke
Then Flat, or Sharpe, for they are more compact: [10]
And being hollow they are spread more thin,
Then other Atomes which are close within:
And Atomes which are thin more tender far,
For those that are more close, they harder are.

If you enjoyed this offering from Mad Madge on atomes then you can find an elephant's sufficency of her scientific poems here

Some more of Mad Madge's poetry

It is always a pleasure to post some of Margaret Cavendish's. Although dead for 335 years her reputation is such that she is as well and fondly regarded as William Topaz and McIntyre, the cheese poet. Here is one of her science poems.

The Circle of the Brain cannot be Squared

A Circle round divided in four parts
Hath been great Study 'mongst the men of Arts;
Since Archimed's or Euclid's time, each Brain
Hath on a Line been stretched, yet all in Vain;
And every Thought hath been a Figure set,
Doubts Cyphers were, Hopes as Triangles met;
There was Division and Subtraction made,
And Lines drawn out, and Points exactly laid,
But none hath yet by Demonstration found
The way, by which to Square a Circle round:
For while the Brain is round, no Square will be,
While Thoughts divide, no Figures will agree.
And others did upon the same account,
Doubling the Cube to a great number mount;
But some the Triangles did cut so small,
Till into equal Atoms they did fall:
For such is Man's curiosity and mind,
To seek for that, which is hardest to find.