Analysis of A Lady Forsaken Complayneth

Sir Edward Dyer 1543 ( Sharpham Park, Glastonbury) – 1607 ( chancel, St Saviour's)



If pleasures be in painfulness, in pleasures doth my body rest,
If joyes accord with carefulness, a joyful hart is in my brest:
If prison strong be liberty, in liberty long have I been,
If joyes accord with misery, who can compare a lyfe to myne:
Who can unbind that is sore bound? who can make free yet is sore thrall,
Or how can any means be found to comfort such a wretch withall?
None can but he yet hath my hart, convert my pains to comfort then,
Yet since his servant I became, most like a bondman have I been:
Since first in bondage I became, my word and deed was ever such,
That never once he could me blame, except for loving him too much.
Which I can judge no just offence, nor cause that I deserved disdayne,
Except he mean through false pretense, through forgèd love to make a trayne.
Nay, nay, alas, my fainèd thoughts my freded and my fainèd ruth,
My pleasures past, my present plaints, shew well I mean but to much truth:
But since I can not him attain, against my will I let him goe,
And lest he glorie at my pain, I wyl attempt to cloke my woe.
Youth learne by me but do not prove, for I have provèd to my pain,
What greeuous greefes do grow by love, and what it is to love in vaine.


Scheme AABBCCDBEEBBFFGGHB
Poetic Form
Metre 11010101011101 11011101011011 1101110001001111 1101110011010111 111111111111111 111101111101011 1111111110111101 111101011101111 1101010111011101 1101111101110111 11111111111011 0111110111111101 110111111101111 1101110111111111 1111110101111111 011111111011111 1111111111111111 111111101111101
Closest metre Iambic octameter
Characters 1,195
Words 239
Sentences 7
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 18
Lines Amount 18
Letters per line (avg) 51
Words per line (avg) 13
Letters per stanza (avg) 922
Words per stanza (avg) 237
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:11 min read
68

Sir Edward Dyer

Sir Edward Dyer was an English courtier and poet. more…

All Sir Edward Dyer poems | Sir Edward Dyer Books

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    Lewis Carroll wrote: "You are old father William, the young man said..."
    A "and your eyes have become less bright"
    B "and you're going to die tonight"
    C "and you seem to have lost your sight"
    D "and your hair has become very white"