A quiet notice V2Melody closes at midnight on , Spanish time.

Closes

A note from Richard

V2Melody will close at midnight on 20 January 2028

This site has been a retirement project in musical poetry: poems chosen with care and set to music, offered freely for as long as it felt right to keep the garden open.

The work no longer holds the place it once did in my life. I have gone as far with it as I wish to go. Like a sand mandala, it was made to be completed and then released. I am not attached to its permanence, and I do not believe any of it needs to last beyond the time it was given. The poems were already here before I arrived and began to experiment with them. They will still be here when these musical experiments, and indeed myself, have been swept away, like the sand of a mandala. Nothing has been lost.

I want a simpler end to my life, days of simple love and enjoyment with my wonderful wife of 20 years. The work of maintaining a server, the monitoring, and the residual obligations that come with keeping a site alive no longer fit that life.

From 4 November 2026 I will not be adding new poems or musical poems to the site.

The experimental music I am making now is on my Suno profile. Those pieces stay there, and are not added to this site.

Until midnight on 20 January 2028, Spanish time, everything remains available exactly as it is. That is when my VPS server contract comes to an end, and it will not be renewed. After that, the server will be switched off and the site will disappear.

The Mandala Is Finished explains this more fully.

Thank you to anyone who found a poem, a track, or a quiet moment here.

The pleasure was in the making.

Richard

Home › Glossary › Letter S

swain

Archaic Terms
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A young man, especially a country youth or rustic lover courting a maiden; a pastoral suitor or shepherd; also a male servant or attendant in poetic contexts.

Detailed Definition
In pastoral poetry, the “swain” is the idealized shepherd-lover, courting his “nymph” in idyllic settings. The term appears in Spenser, Milton, and Pope to evoke classical bucolic traditions or gentle courtship. It could also denote a knight’s attendant, blending service and youth. Its archaic charm suits romantic or satirical treatments of love, innocence, or rural life. Though obsolete, “swain” remains a poetic shorthand for earnest, if naive, masculine devotion.
Example
Example in poetry:
The shepherd swain piped a merry tune (young man, rustic youth); A love-sick swain sighed beneath her window (male admirer, young lover); The country swain knew every field and tree (rustic youth, country lad); Many a swain competed for her hand (suitor, young man); The swain and his lass danced at the fair (young country man); A simple swain who tended sheep (rural youth, farm lad)
Additional Notes
Swain originally meant a young man, especially a rural youth or farm worker. In pastoral poetry, swains are idealized shepherds or country lovers. The term evolved to emphasize the romantic role—rustic suitor or devoted lover. Students should recognize swain's pastoral and romantic associations. Shakespeare uses swain for country lovers and servants. In pastoral conventions, swains court nymphs and shepherdesses. The term can be patronizing (simple country fellow) or idealizing (uncorrupted natural man). By the 18th century, swain was primarily poetic, evoking pastoral tradition. Modern readers encounter swain mainly in pastoral poetry and their parodies. Compare "shepherd" (occupation), "peasant" (social class), and "swain" (romantic pastoral figure). Understanding swain's literary conventionality helps recognize genre and mode. Feminine equivalent: "nymph" or "shepherdess" in pastoral contexts.
Also Known As
swaine swayne shepherd beau swineherd
Skip to main content