Analysis of The Retreat
Henry King 1592 (Worminghall, Buckinghamshire) – 1669 (Chichester)
Pursue no more (my thoughts!) that false unkind,
You may assoon imprison the North-wind;
Or catch the Lightning as it leaps; or reach
The leading billow first ran down the breach;
Or undertake the flying clouds to track
In the same path they yesterday did rack.
Then, like a Torch turn'd downward, let the same
Desire which nourisht it, put out your flame.
Loe thus I doe divorce thee from my brest,
False to thy vow, and traitour to my rest!
Henceforth thy tears shall be (though thou repent)
Like pardons after execution sent.
Nor shalt thou ever my loves story read,
But as some Epitaph of what is dead.
So may my hope on future blessings dwell,
As 'tis my firm resolve and last farewell.
Scheme | AABBCCDDEEFFGGHH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 0111111101 111010011 1101011111 0101011101 110010111 001111011 1101110101 0101111111 1111011111 111101111 1111111101 110100101 1111011101 111101111 1111110101 111101011 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 699 |
Words | 129 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 16 |
Lines Amount | 16 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 541 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 126 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 39 sec read
- 36 Views
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"The Retreat" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 17 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/17678/the-retreat>.
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