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[Page 167]
[Illustration]
FABLE [49] XLIX.
The Man and the Flea.
1 Whether on earth, in air, or main,
2 Sure ev'ry thing alive is vain!
3 Does not the hawk all fowls survey,
4 As destin'd only for his prey?
5 And do not tyrants, prouder things,
6 Think men were born for slaves to kings?
7 When the crab views the pearly strands,
8 Or Tagus, bright with golden sands,
[Page 168]9 Or crawles beside the coral grove,
10 And hears the ocean roll above;
11 Nature is too profuse, says he,
12 Who gave all these to pleasure me!
13 When bord'ring pinks and roses bloom,
14 And ev'ry garden breaths perfume,
15 When peaches glow with sunny dyes,
16 Like Laura's cheek, when blushes rise;
17 When with huge figs the branches bend;
18 When clusters from the vine depend;
19 The snail looks round on flow'r and tree,
20 And cries, all these were made for me!
21 What dignity's in human nature,
22 Says Man, the most conceited creature,
23 As from a cliff he cast his eye,
24 And view'd the sea and arched sky!
25 The sun was sunk beneath the main,
26 The moon, and all the starry train
[Page 169]27 Hung the vast vault of heav'n. The Man
28 His contemplation thus began.
29 When I behold this glorious show,
30 And the wide watry world below,
31 The scaly people of the main,
32 The beasts that range the wood or plain,
33 The wing'd inhabitants of air,
34 The day, the night, the various year,
35 And know all these by heav'n design'd
36 As gifts to pleasure human kind,
37 I cannot raise my worth too high;
38 Of what vast consequence am I!
39 Not of th' importance you suppose,
40 Replies a Flea upon his nose:
41 Be humble, learn thyself to scan;
42 Know, pride was never made for man.
43 'Tis vanity that swells thy mind.
44 What, heav'n and earth for thee design'd!
45 For thee! made only for our need;
46 That more important Fleas might feed.
Source edition
Gay, John, 1685-1732. FABLES. By Mr. GAY. London: Printed for J. Tonson and J. Watts, MDCCXXVII., 1727, pp. 167-169. [14],173,[1]p.: ill.; 4°. (ESTC T13818)
Editorial principles
Typography, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation have been cautiously modernized. The source of the text is given and all significant editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. This ECPA text has been edited to conform to the recommendations found in Level 5 of the Best Practices for TEI in Libraries version 4.0.0.
Other works by John Gay
- [FABLE ] INTRODUCTION TO THE FABLES. The Shepherd and the Philosopher. ()
- FABLE [01] I. The Lyon, the Tyger, and the Traveller. ()
- FABLE [02] II. The Spaniel and the Cameleon. ()
- FABLE [03] III. The Mother, the Nurse, and the Fairy. ()
- FABLE [04] IV. The Eagle, and the Assembly of Animals. ()
- FABLE [05] V. The Wild Boar and the Ram. ()
- FABLE [06] VI. The Miser and Plutus. ()
- FABLE [07] VII. The Lyon, the Fox, and the Geese. ()
- FABLE [08] VIII. The Lady and the Wasp. ()
- FABLE [09] IX. The Bull and the Mastiff. ()
- FABLE [10] X. The Elephant and the Bookseller. ()
- FABLE [11] XI. The Peacock, the Turkey, and Goose. ()
- FABLE [12] XII. Cupid, Hymen, and Plutus. ()
- FABLE [13] XIII. The tame Stag. ()
- FABLE [14] XIV. The Monkey who had seen the World. ()
- FABLE [15] XV. The Philosopher and the Pheasants. ()
- FABLE [16] XVI. The Pin and the Needle. ()
- FABLE [17] XVII. The Shepherd's Dog and the Wolf. ()
- FABLE [18] XVIII. The Painter who pleased No body and Every body. ()
- FABLE [19] XIX. The Lyon and the Cub. ()
- FABLE [20] XX. The Old Hen and the Cock. ()
- FABLE [21] XXI. The Rat-catcher and Cats. ()
- FABLE [22] XXII. The Goat without a beard. ()
- FABLE [23] XXIII. The Old Woman and her Cats. ()
- FABLE [24] XXIV. The Butterfly and the Snail. ()
- FABLE [25] XXV. The Scold and the Parrot. ()
- FABLE [26] XXVI. The Cur and the Mastiff. ()
- FABLE [27] XXVII. The Sick Man and the Angel. ()
- FABLE [28] XXVIII. The Persian, the Sun and the Cloud. ()
- FABLE [29] XXIX. The Fox at the point of death. ()
- FABLE [30] XXX. The Setting-dog and the Partridge. ()
- FABLE [31] XXXI. The Universal Apparition. ()
- FABLE [32] XXXII. The two Owls and the Sparrow. ()
- FABLE [33] XXXIII. The Courtier and Proteus. ()
- FABLE [34] XXXIV. The Mastiffs. ()
- FABLE [35] XXXV. The Barley-mow and the Dung-hill. ()
- FABLE [36] XXXVI. Pythagoras and the Countryman. ()
- FABLE [37] XXXVII. The Farmer's Wife and the Raven. ()
- FABLE [38] XXXVIII. The Turkey and the Ant. ()
- FABLE [39] XXXIX. The Father and Jupiter. ()
- FABLE [40] XL. The two Monkeys. ()
- FABLE [41] XLI. The Owl and the Farmer. ()
- FABLE [42] XLII. The Jugglers. ()
- FABLE [43] XLIII. The Council of Horses. ()
- FABLE [44] XLIV. The Hound and the Huntsman. ()
- FABLE [45] XLV. The Poet and the Rose. ()
- FABLE [46] XLVI. The Cur, the Horse, and the Shepherd's Dog. ()
- FABLE [47] XLVII. The Court of Death. ()
- FABLE [48] XLVIII. The Gardener and the Hog. ()
- FABLE [50] L. The Hare and many Friends. ()