Analysis of Upon A Looking Glass

John Bunyan 1628 (Elstow, Bedfordshire) – 1688 (London)



In this see thou thy beauty, hast thou any,
Or thy defects, should they be few or many.
Thou may'st, too, here thy spots and freckles see,
Hast thou but eyes, and what their numbers be.
But art thou blind? There is no looking-glass
Can show thee thy defects, thy spots, or face.

Unto this glass we may compare the Word,
For that to man advantage doth afford
(Has he a mind to know himself and state),
To see what will be his eternal fate.
But without eyes, alas! how can he see?
Many that seem to look here, blind men be.
This is the reason they so often read
Their judgment there, and do it nothing dread.


Scheme AAAAXX XXBBAACC
Poetic Form
Metre 01111101110 11101111110 11111110101 1111011101 1111111101 1111101111 1011110101 1111010101 1101110101 1111110101 1011011111 1011111111 1101011101 1101011101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 612
Words 121
Sentences 11
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 6, 8
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 33
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 231
Words per stanza (avg) 59
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

36 sec read
94

John Bunyan

John Bunyan was an English Christian writer and preacher, who is well known for his book The Pilgrim's Progress. more…

All John Bunyan poems | John Bunyan Books

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