by George Gordon, Lord Byron
(composed: 1805 or 1806, from Hours of Idleness - 1807)
1
Away with your fictions of flimsy romance,
Those tissues of falsehood which folly has wove!
Give me the mild beam of the soul-breathing glance,
Or the rapture which dwells on the first kiss of love.
2
Ye rhymers, whose bosoms with phantasy glow,
Whose pastoral passions are made for the grove;
From what blest inspiration your sonnets would flow,
Could you ever tasted the first kiss love!
3
If Apollo should e’er his assistance refuse,
Or the Nine be disposed from your service to rove,
Invoke them no more, bid adieu to the muse,
And try the effect of the first kiss of love.
4
I hate you, ye cold compositions of art!
Though prudes may condemn me, and bigots reprove,
I court the effusions that spring from the heart,
Which throbs with delight to the first kiss of love.
5
Your shepherds, your flocks, those fantastical themes,
Perhaps may amuse, yet they never can move:
Arcadia displays but a region of dreams;
What are visions like these to the first kiss of love.
6
Oh! cease to affirm that man, since his birth,
From Adam till now, has with wretchedness strove;
Some portion of paradise still is on earth,
And Eden revives in the first kiss of love.
7
When age chills the blood, when our pleasures are past—
For years fleet away with the wings of the dove—
The dearest remembrance will still be the last,
Our sweetest memorial the first kiss of love.
What would romance be without the anticipation of the first kiss? The First Kiss of Love is one of Byron’s earliest works, written when he was about 17 or 18. For me, his youth explains a great deal about the enthusiasm the poem exudes.
Lord Byron, who speaks with a voice of experience, and takes the position that nothing you read, hear or see in your lifetime will ever compare with a first kiss. Stories we read will fade from your memory, you will age and forget a great deal of things, but you will never forget your first kiss. In fact, someone who has experienced a first kiss will be able to identify those who write about romances but haven’t had the same experience. A first kiss is transformative.
There is fervour in the refrain, “...the first kiss of love” at the end of each quatrain. The tone Byron takes is one of recommendation. Readers must seek out and try a first kiss because it will change the way you see the world.
Although the subject of each stanza differs, the continuation of the ‘b’ rhyme throughout (abaB cbcB dbdB...) links each one and reinforces the poets position about the power of the first kiss.
The poem’s rhythm is light and joyous – just a first kiss should be. By reading this poem and remembering your first kiss the poet is right, there is something special about a first kiss. It moves romance from the idealistic to a physical experience. Once you have tasted the poison fruit of Eden you can’t go back!