Nobility
In Nobility, Cary conveys the importance of character over material wealth or social status. She champions kindness, honesty, and a life lived with integrity as the true measures of nobility. This poem resonates with her belief that real honor and “kingliness” lie in everyday acts of goodness and truthfulness, embodying the essence of her quote about kindness and truth.
True worth is in being, not seeming,—
In doing, each day that goes by
Some little good—not in the dreaming
Of great things to do by and by.
For whatever men say in their blindness,
And in spite of the fancies of youth,
There’s nothing so kingly as kindness,
And nothing so royal as truth.
We get back our mete as we measure;
We cannot do wrong and feel right;
Nor can we give pain and gain pleasure,
For justice avenges each slight.
The air for the wing of the sparrow,
The bush for the robin and wren,
But always the path that is narrow
And straight, for the children of men.
‘Tis not in the pages of story
The heart of its ills to beguile,
Though he who makes courtship to glory
Gives all he hath for her smile.
For when from her heights he has won her,
Alas! it is only to prove
That nothing’s so sacred as honor,
And nothing so loyal as love!
We cannot make bargains for blisses,
Nor catch them like fishes in nets;
And sometimes the thing our life misses
Helps more than the thing which it gets.
For good lieth not in pursuing,
Nor gaining of great nor of small,
But just in the doing, and doing
As we would be done by, is all.
Through envy, through malice, through hating,
Against the world, early and late,
No jot of our courage abating—
Our part is to work and to wait.
And slight is the sting of his trouble
Whose winnings are less than his worth;
For he who is honest is noble,
Whatever his fortunes or birth.
Alice Cary (1820–1871) was an American poet known for her introspective and heartfelt verse, often exploring themes of faith, family, and rural life. Alice began to write poems and sketches of rural life under the nom de plume of Patty Lee, which attracted attention from the editors of the periodicals to which she contributed. In the mean time, Phoebe Gary, following her sister’s example, began to contribute, and, in 1850, the two sisters published their first volume of poems in Philadelphia. A volume of prose sketches entitled “Glover Nook, or Recollections of our Neighborhood in the West,” by Alice Gary followed in 1851.
The sisters became well-known poets of their time, often called “the sister spirits of poesy”, and eventually moved to New York, where they mingled with prominent writers, reformers, and activists. Alice Cary’s poetry often reflected a feminist perspective and a compassion for social justice, unusual for women writers in her era. She was one of the first American women poets to gain recognition and respect in literary circles typically dominated by men.
Despite her ill health, Alice continued to write prolifically until her death and maintained a literary salon in her New York home, where she and Phoebe hosted prominent figures like P.T. Barnum, Horace Greeley, and John Greenleaf Whittier. Her resilience and dedication to her craft helped pave the way for future generations of women poets.
