Algernon Charles Swinburne, The Triumph of Time
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The loves and hours of the life of a man, They are swift and sad, being born of the sea. Hours that rejoice and regret for a span, Born with a man's breath, mortal as he; Loves that are lost ere they come to birth, Weeds of the wave, without fruit upon earth. I lose what I long for, save what I can, My love, my love, and no love for me!

— Algernon Charles Swinburne on Poetry about love

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "The loves and hours of the life of a man, They are swift and sad, being born of the sea. Hours that rejoice and regret for a span, Born with a man's breath, mortal as he; Loves that are lost ere they come to birth, Weeds of the wave, without fruit upon earth. I lose what I long for, save what I can, My love, my love, and no love for me!" in the context of "Algernon Charles Swinburne, The Triumph of Time" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "Poetry about love" (S) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Algernon Charles Swinburne

About Algernon Charles Swinburne

Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet.