Analysis of On the Infancy of Our Savior
Francis Quarles 1592 (Romford) – 1644
Hail! blessed Virgin, full of heavenly grace,
Blest above all that sprang from human race,
Whose heaven-saluted womb brought forth in one
A blessed Savior and a blessed Son.
O what a ravishment 't had been to see
Thy little Savior perking on thy knee!
To see Him nuzzle in thy virgin breast,
His milk-white body all unclad, undressed;
To see thy busy fingers clothe and wrap
His spraddling limbs in thy indulgent lap;
To see His desperate eyes with childish grace
Smiling upon His smiling mother's face;
And when His forward strength began to bloom
To see Him diddle up and down the room.
O who would think so sweet a Babe as this
Should ere be slain by a false-hearted kiss?
Had I a rag, if sure Thy body wore it,
Pardon, sweet Babe, I think I should adore it;
Till then, O grant this boon, a boon far dearer:
The weed not being, I may adore the Wearer.
Scheme | AABBCCDDEEAAFFGGHHII |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 1110111001 1011111101 11001011101 01100011 110111111 1101010111 1111001101 111101101 1111010101 111010101 1111011101 1001110101 0111010111 111110101 1111110111 1111101101 11011111011 10111111011 11111101110 011101101010 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 862 |
Words | 163 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 20 |
Lines Amount | 20 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 666 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 161 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 27, 2023
- 49 sec read
- 42 Views
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"On the Infancy of Our Savior" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 14 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/13859/on-the-infancy-of-our-savior>.
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