Analysis of Too Dearly Had I Bought
Henry Howard 1517 – 1547
Too dearly had I bought my green and youthful years,
If in mine age I could not find when craft for love appears;
And seldom though I come in court among the rest,
Yet can I judge in colors dim as deep as can the best.
Where grief torments the man that suff'reth secret smart,
To break it forth unto some friend it easeth well the heart.
So stands it now with me for my beloved friend:
This case is thine for whom I feel such torment of my mind,
And for thy sake I burn so in my secret breast
That till thou know my whole disease my heart can have no rest.
I see how thine abuse hath wrested so thy wits
That all it yields to thy desire, and follows thee by fits.
Where thou hast loved so long with heart and all thy power,
I see thee fed with feigned words, thy freedom to devour.
I know, though she say nay and would it well withstand,
When in her grace thou held the most, she bare thee but in hand.
I see her pleasant cheer in chiefest of thy suit;
When thou are gone I see him come, that gathers up the fruit.
And eke in thy respect I see the base degree
Of him to whom she gave the heart that promised was to thee.
I see, what would you more? stood never man so sure
On woman's word, but wisdom would mistrust it to endure
Scheme | AABBCCDEBBFFGGHHIIJJKK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 110111110101 10111111111101 010111010101 11110101111101 1110111101 1111101111101 11111111011 1111111111111 011111101101 11111101111111 111101110111 111111010010111 1111111101110 11111111101010 111111011101 10011101111101 11010101111 11111111110101 010101110101 11111101110111 111111110111 11011101011101 |
Closest metre | Iambic heptameter |
Characters | 1,226 |
Words | 253 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 22 |
Lines Amount | 22 |
Letters per line (avg) | 43 |
Words per line (avg) | 11 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 951 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 251 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:16 min read
- 60 Views
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