Analysis of On a Fan of the Author's Design

Alexander Pope 1688 (London) – 1744 (Twickenham)



Come gentle Air! th' AEolian shepherd said,
While Procris panted in the secret shade:
Come, gentle Air, the fairer Delia cries,
While at her feet her swain expiring lies.
Lo the glad gales o'er all her beauties stray,
Breathe on her lips, and in her bosom play!
In Delia's hand this toy is fatal found,
Nor could that fabled dart more surely wound:
Both gifts destructive to the givers prove;
Alike both lovers fall by those they love.
Yet guiltless too this bright destroyer lives,
At random wounds, nor knows the wound she gives:
She views the story with attentive eyes,
And pities Procris, while her lover dies.


Scheme ABCCDDEEFGHHCC
Poetic Form
Metre 1101111101 111000101 1101010101 1101010101 10111010101 1101000101 011111101 1111011101 1101010101 0111011111 1101110101 1101110111 1101010101 01110101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 609
Words 110
Sentences 6
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 484
Words per stanza (avg) 108
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 20, 2023

33 sec read
132

Alexander Pope

Alexander Pope (1688-1744) is regarded as one of the greatest English poets, and the foremost poet of the early eighteenth century. He is best known for his satirical and discursive poetry, including The Rape of the Lock, The Dunciad, and An Essay on Criticism, as well as for his translation of Homer. more…

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