Analysis of Holy Sonnet XVII: Since She Whom I Loved

John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)



Since she whom I loved hath paid her last debt
To Nature, and to hers, and my good is dead,
And her soul early into heaven ravished,
Wholly on heavenly things my mind is set.
here the admiring her my mind did whet
To seek thee, God; so streams do show the head;
But though I have found thee, and thou my thirst hast fed,
a holy thristy dropsy melts me yet.
But why should I beg more love, whenas thou
Dost woo my soul, for hers offering all thine:
And dost not only fear lest I allow
My love to saints and angels, things divine,
but in they tender jealousy dost doubt
lest the world, flesh, yea, devil put thee out.


Scheme ABAAABBACDCDEE
Poetic Form
Metre 1111111011 11001001111 0011001101 10110011111 1001001111 1111111101 111111011111 010110111 111111111 11111010011 0111011101 1111010101 1011010011 1011110111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 610
Words 124
Sentences 4
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 34
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 474
Words per stanza (avg) 122
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

37 sec read
82

John Donne

John Donne was an English poet, satirist, lawyer and a cleric in the Church of England. more…

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