In this poem, the speaker struggles to win his love with words and fails, only to find that someone else has won her love with a mere sigh. The experience leads the speaker to certain conclusions about love.

Read the poem Love’s Secret and fill in the graphic organizer.

“Love’s Secret,” by William Blake



Never seek to tell thy love,

Love that never told can be;

For the gentle wind does move

Silently, invisibly.

(5) I told my love, I told my love,

I told her all my heart,

Trembling, cold, in ghastly fears:

Ah! she did depart!

Soon as she was gone from me,

(10) A traveler came by,

Silently, invisibly:

He took her with a sigh.

What is Love’s Secret?

In line 7, the speaker uses the following words: trembling, cold, and ghastly fears. How do these words affect the meaning of the poem?

The speaker uses the phrase “silently, invisibly” twice in the poem. Once in line 4 and again in line 11. How does the tone of line 4 differ from line 11?