Analysis of The Altar

George Herbert 1593 (Montgomery) – 1633 (Bemerton)



A broken ALTAR, Lord, thy servant rears,
    Made of a heart and cemented with tears;
        Whose parts are as thy hand did frame;
        No workman's tool hath touch'd the same.
          A HEART alone
          Is such a stone,
          As nothing but
          Thy pow'r doth cut.
          Wherefore each part
          Of my hard heart
          Meets in this frame
          To praise thy name.
      That if I chance to hold my peace,
      These stones to praise thee may not cease.
  Oh, let thy blessed SACRIFICE be mine,
  And sanctify this ALTAR to be thine.


Scheme ABCCDDEEFFCCGGHH
Poetic Form
Metre 0101011101 1101001011 11111111 11011101 0101 1101 1101 11111 111 1111 1011 1111 11111111 11111111 11111011 0100110111
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 567
Words 91
Sentences 6
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 16
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 22
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 353
Words per stanza (avg) 89
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 23, 2023

28 sec read
234

George Herbert

The Very Reverend Honourable George Herbert was an Anglican priest. more…

All George Herbert poems | George Herbert Books

2 fans

Discuss this George Herbert poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Altar" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/15386/the-altar>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    1
    day
    23
    hours
    37
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Which of the following was the last to evolve?
    A Epic poetry
    B Dithyramb
    C Invective
    D Tragedy