Penny Dreadfuls, 1812 · page 175 of 258
Psyche, and other poems — page 175: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is page 157 of a Victorian penny dreadful, displaying a complete sonnet titled simply "SONNET." The poem addresses a "deluded heart," warning against surrendering to treacherous pleasure and the false promises of Fancy and Hope. The speaker laments past betrayals and disappointment, ultimately confessing that despite Truth's pleas, his soul remains "vanquished" by an unnamed woman's enchanting power. The verse employs melodramatic language typical of Victorian sensation fiction, emphasizing emotional torment and romantic despair.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
157 SONNET. * —e Poor, fond deluded heart! wilt thou again Listen, enchanted, to the syren song Of treacherous pleasure? Ah, deceived too long, Cease now at length to throb with wishes vain! Ah, cease her paths bewildering to explore ! Betrayed so oft! vet recollect the woe Which waits on disappointment; taught to know By sad experience, wilt thou not give o’er To rest, deluded, on the fickle wing Which Fancy lends thee in her airy flight, But to seduce thee to some giddy height, — And leave thee there a poor forsaken thing. Hope warbles once again, Truth pleads in vain, ~And my charmed soul sinks vanquished by her strain: ConnicloookkSscomn)