Analysis of To One demanding why Wine sparkles

Henry King 1592 (Worminghall, Buckinghamshire) – 1669 (Chichester)



So Diamonds sparkle, and thy Mistriss eyes;
When tis not Fire but light in either flyes.
Beauty not thaw'd by lustful flames will show
Like a fair mountain of unmelted snow:
Nor can the tasted vine more danger bring
Then water taken from the chrystall Spring,
Whose end is to refresh and cool that heat
Which unallayd becomes foul vices seat:
Unless thy boyling veins, mad with desire
Of drink, convert the liquor into fire.
For then thou quaff'st down feavers, thy full bowles
Carouse the burning draughts of Portia's coles.
If it do leap and sparkle in the cup,
Twill sink thy cares, and help invention up.
There never yet was Muse or Poet known
Not dipt or drenched in this Helicon.
But Tom! take heed thou use it with such care
As Witches deal with their Familiar.
For if thy vertues circle not confine
And guard thee from the Furies rais'd by wine,
'Tis ten to one this dancing spirit may
A Devil prove to bear thy wits away;
And make thy glowing nose a Map of Hell
Where Bacchus purple fumes like Meteors dwell.
Now think not these sage moralls thee invite
To prove Carthusian or strict Rechabite;
Let fooles be mad, wise people may be free,
Though not to license turn their libertie.
He that drinks wine for health, not for excess,
Nor drownes his temper in a drunkenness,
Shall feel no more the grapes unruly fate,
Then if he took some chilling Opiate.


Scheme AABBCCDDEEFFGGHIJEKKLLMMNDODPQRS
Poetic Form
Metre 110100111 11110110101 1011110111 10110111 1101011101 110101011 1111010111 11011101 0111111010 11100100110 111111111 010101111 1111010001 1111010101 1101111101 11110110 1111111111 110111010 111110101 011101111 1111110101 0101111101 0111010111 11010111001 111111101 111111 1111110111 11110111 111111111 1111000100 1111010101 1111110100
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,368
Words 250
Sentences 11
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 32
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 34
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 1,079
Words per stanza (avg) 248
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:16 min read
113

Henry King

Henry King was an English poet who served as Bishop of Chichester. more…

All Henry King poems | Henry King Books

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