Poems List

There’s a fascination frantic

In a ruin that’s romantic;

2

The flowers that bloom in the spring,

Tra la,

1

Merely corroborative detail, intended to give artistic verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative.

The Mikado (1885) act 2

My object all sublime

I shall achieve in time—

2

Something lingering, with boiling oil in it, I fancy.

The Mikado (1885) act 2

Here’s a how-de-doo!

The Mikado (1885) act 2

Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock,

From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block.

1

Three little maids from school are we.

The Mikado (1885) act 1

Modified rapture!

The Mikado (1885) act 1

1

The idiot who praises, with enthusiastic tone,

All centuries but this, and every country but his own.

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W. S. Gilbert was born in London and had a diverse career, practicing as a lawyer and later as a writer. His worldwide fame came from his partnership with Arthur Sullivan, which lasted for over twenty years. Gilbert was the principal lyricist and librettist, creating ingenious stories, eccentric characters, and dialogues filled with wit and irony. His comic operas satirized Victorian society, politics, and the social conventions of his time. In addition to his collaborations with Sullivan, Gilbert also wrote plays, short stories, and poems. His work 'The Bab Ballads' is a collection of short, rhyming poems that served as the basis for many of his operas. Gilbert was knighted (Knight Bachelor) in 1907.