Analysis of To phillis, to love and live with him

Robert Herrick 1591 (London) – 1674 (Dean Prior)



TO PHILLIS, TO LOVE AND LIVE WITH HIM

Live, live with me, and thou shalt see
The pleasures I'll prepare for thee:
What sweets the country can afford
Shall bless thy bed, and bless thy board.
The soft sweet moss shall be thy bed,
With crawling woodbine over-spread:
By which the silver-shedding streams
Shall gently melt thee into dreams.
Thy clothing next, shall be a gown
Made of the fleeces' purest down.
The tongues of kids shall be thy meat;
Their milk thy drink; and thou shalt eat
The paste of filberts for thy bread
With cream of cowslips buttered:
Thy feasting-table shall be hills
With daisies spread, and daffadils;
Where thou shalt sit, and Red-breast by,
For meat, shall give thee melody.
I'll give thee chains and carcanets
Of primroses and violets.
A bag and bottle thou shalt have,
That richly wrought, and this as brave;
So that as either shall express
The wearer's no mean shepherdess.
At shearing-times, and yearly wakes,
When Themilis his pastime makes,
There thou shalt be; and be the wit,
Nay more, the feast, and grace of it.
On holydays, when virgins meet
To dance the heys with nimble feet,
Thou shalt come forth, and then appear
The Queen of Roses for that year.
And having danced ('bove all the best)
Carry the garland from the rest,
In wicker-baskets maids shall bring
To thee, my dearest shepherdling,
The blushing apple, bashful pear,
And shame-faced plum, all simp'ring there.
Walk in the groves, and thou shalt find
The name of Phillis in the rind
Of every straight and smooth-skin tree;
Where kissing that, I'll twice kiss thee.
To thee a sheep-hook I will send,
Be-prank'd with ribbands, to this end,
This, this alluring hook might be
Less for to catch a sheep, than me.
Thou shalt have possets, wassails fine,
Not made of ale, but spiced wine;
To make thy maids and self free mirth,
All sitting near the glitt'ring hearth.
Thou shalt have ribbands, roses, rings,
Gloves, garters, stockings, shoes, and strings
Of winning colours, that shall move
Others to lust, but me to love.
--These, nay, and more, thine own shall be,
If thou wilt love, and live with me.


Scheme X AABBCCDDEEFFCXXAXAAXXXXAGGHHFFIIJJKKLLMMAANNAAOOXXPPXXAA
Poetic Form
Metre 110110111 11110111 01010111 11010101 11110111 01111111 1101101 11010101 11011011 11011101 11010101 01111111 11110111 01110111 111110 11010111 110101 11110111 11111100 111101 1100100 01010111 11010111 11110101 01111 11010101 11111 11110101 11010111 111101 11011101 11110101 01110111 01011101 10010101 01010111 111101 01010101 0111111 10010111 01110001 110010111 11011111 11011111 1111111 11010111 11110111 111111 1111111 11110111 1101011 1111101 11010101 1101111 10111111 11011111 11110111
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 2,044
Words 369
Sentences 15
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 1, 56
Lines Amount 57
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 814
Words per stanza (avg) 184
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 02, 2023

1:53 min read
101

Robert Herrick

Robert Herrick was born in London, England, in 1591. He was apprenticed to a goldsmith (his uncle, Sir William), but went to Cambridge, at St John's, in 1613. He was ordained at Peterborough in 1623 and became chaplain to the Duke of Buckingham a few years later. "Hesperides" - a collection of 1200 lyrical poems - was published in 1648 and it remained his magnum opus. Herrick died in 1674, aged 83. more…

All Robert Herrick poems | Robert Herrick Books

5 fans

Discuss this Robert Herrick poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "To phillis, to love and live with him" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/31473/to-phillis%2C-to-love-and-live-with-him>.

    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
    9
    hours
    19
    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?

    »
    What's the oldest written poem exist?
    A Epic of Gilgamesh
    B Odyssey
    C Ramayana
    D Iliad