Analysis of I do not love Thee

Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton 1808 (Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Sheridan London) – 1877 (London)



I DO not love thee!--no! I do not love thee!
And yet when thou art absent I am sad;
   And envy even the bright blue sky above thee,
Whose quiet stars may see thee and be glad.

I do not love thee!--yet, I know not why,
Whate'er thou dost seems still well done, to me:
   And often in my solitude I sigh
That those I do love are not more like thee!

I do not love thee!--yet, when thou art gone,
I hate the sound (though those who speak be dear)
   Which breaks the lingering echo of the tone
Thy voice of music leaves upon my ear.

I do not love thee!--yet thy speaking eyes,
With their deep, bright, and most expressive blue,
   Between me and the midnight heaven arise,
Oftener than any eyes I ever knew.

I know I do not love thee! yet, alas!
Others will scarcely trust my candid heart;
   And oft I catch them smiling as they pass,
Because they see me gazing where thou art.


Scheme ABAB CACA XXXX DEDE FGFG
Poetic Form Quatrain  (80%)
Tetractys  (20%)
Etheree  (20%)
Metre 11111111111 0111110111 010100111011 1101111011 1111111111 1011111111 010011011 1111111111 1111111111 1101111111 11010010101 1111010111 1111111101 1111010101 0110011001 10011011101 1111111101 1011011101 0111110111 0111110111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 895
Words 176
Sentences 14
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 33
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 130
Words per stanza (avg) 34
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

53 sec read
116

Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton

Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton was an English feminist, social reformer, and author of the early and mid-nineteenth century. more…

All Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton poems | Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton Books

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