Analysis of Sonnet 154: The little Love-god lying once asleep
William Shakespeare 1564 (Stratford-upon-Avon) – 1616 (Stratford-upon-Avon)
The little love god lying once asleep
Laid by his side his heart-inflaming brand,
Whilst many nymphs that vowed chaste life to keep
Came tripping by; but in her maiden hand,
The fairest votary took up that fire
Which many legions of true hearts had warmed,
And so the general of hot desire
Was sleeping by a virgin hand disarmed.
This brand she quenched in a cool well by,
Which from Love's fire took heat perpetual,
Growing a bath and healthful remedy,
For men discased; but I, my mistress' thrall,
Came there for cure and this by that I prove,
Love's fire heats water, water cools not love.
| Scheme | ABABCDCEFGHIJK |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | |
| Metre | 0101110101 1111110101 1101111111 1101100101 010111110 1101011111 01010011010 1101010101 111100111 11110110100 1001010100 111111101 1111011111 11011010111 |
| Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
| Characters | 595 |
| Words | 110 |
| Sentences | 3 |
| Stanzas | 1 |
| Stanza Lengths | 14 |
| Lines Amount | 14 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
| Words per line (avg) | 8 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 467 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 108 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 18, 2023
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"Sonnet 154: The little Love-god lying once asleep" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/41459/sonnet-154%3A-the-little-love-god-lying-once-asleep>.
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