Analysis of Fragment

Anne Kingsmill Finch 1661 – 1720 (Westminster)



SO here confin'd, and but to female Clay,
ARDELIA's Soul mistook the rightful Way:
Whilst the soft Breeze of Pleasure's tempting Air
Made her believe, Felicity was there;
And basking in the warmth of early Time,
To vain Amusements dedicate her Prime.
Ambition next allur'd her tow'ring Eye;
For Paradice she heard was plac'd on high,
Then thought, the Court with all its glorious Show
Was sure above the rest, and Paradice below.
There plac'd too soon the flaming Sword appear'd,
Remov'd those Pow'rs, whom justly she rever'd,
Adher'd too in their Wreck, and in their Ruin shar'd.
Now by the Wheels inevitable Round,
With them thrown prostrate to the humble Ground,
No more she takes (instructed by that Fall)
For fix'd, or worth her thought, this rolling Ball: {1}
Tow'rds a more certain Station she aspires,
Unshaken by Revolts, and owns no less Desires.
But all in vain are Pray'rs, extatick Thoughts,
Recover'd Moments, and retracted Faults,
Retirement, which the World Moroseness calls,
Abandon'd Pleasures in Monastick {2} Walls:
These, but at distance, towards that purpose tend,
The lowly Means to an exalted End;
Which He must perfect, who allots her Stay,
And That, accomplish'd, will direct the way.
Pity her restless Cares, and weary Strife,
And point some Issue to escaping Life;
Which so dismiss'd, no Pen or Human Speech
Th' ineffable Recess can ever teach:
Th' Expanse, the Light, the Harmony, the Throng,
The Bride's Attendance, and the Bridal Song,
The numerous Mansions, and th' immortal Tree,
No Eye, unpurg'd by Death, must ever see,
Or Waves which through that wond'rous City roll.
Rest then content, my too impatient Soul;
Observe but here the easie Precepts given,
Then wait with chearful hope, till Heaven be known in Heaven.


Scheme AABBCCDDEEFFGHHIIJJKLMMNNAAOOPPQQRRSSTT
Poetic Form
Metre 110101111 11010101 101111101 1001010011 0100011101 110101001 0101010111 11111111 11011111001 1101010101 1111010101 0111110101 011011001101 1101010001 1111010101 1111010111 1111011101 10110101010 0101010111010 11011111 0101000101 010010111 01010011 11110011101 0101110101 1110110101 0101010101 1001010101 0111010101 1101111101 110100011101 110101010001 0101000101 0100100110101 111111101 111111101 1110110101 011101110 1111111011010
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,758
Words 293
Sentences 8
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 39
Lines Amount 39
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 1,365
Words per stanza (avg) 291
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:34 min read
103

Anne Kingsmill Finch

Anne Finch, Countess of Winchilsea (née Kingsmill), was an English poet and courtier. Finch's works often express a desire for respect as a female poet, lamenting her difficult position as a woman in the literary establishment and the court, while writing of "political ideology, religious orientation, and aesthetic sensibility". Her works also allude to other female authors of the time, such as Aphra Behn and Katherine Phillips. Through her commentary on the mental and spiritual equality of the genders and the importance of women fulfilling their potential as a moral duty to themselves and to society, she is regarded as one of the integral female poets of the Restoration Era. Finch died in Westminster in 1720 and was buried at her home at Eastwell, Kent.  more…

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