Analysis of The Call

Henry Vaughan 1621 (Brecknockshire) – 1695



COME, my heart ! come, my head,
In sighs, and tears !
'Tis now, since you have lain thus dead,
Some twenty years ;
Awake, awake,
Some pity take
Upon yourselves !
Who never wake to groan, nor weep,
Shall be sentenc'd for their sleep.

Do but see your sad estate,
How many sands
Have left us, while we careless sate
With folded hands ;
What stock of nights,
Of days, and years
In silent flights
Stole by our ears ;
How ill have we ourselves bestow'd,
Whose suns are all set in a cloud !

Yet come, and let's peruse them all,
And as we pass,
What sins on every minute fall
Score on the glass ;
Then weigh, and rate
Their heavy state,
Until
The glass with tears you fill ;
That done, we shall be safe and good :
Those beasts were clean that chew'd the cud.


Scheme AXABCCXDD EFEFGBGBXX HIHIEEJJXA
Poetic Form
Metre 111111 0101 11111111 1101 0101 1101 0101 11011111 1110111 1111101 1101 11111101 1101 1111 1101 0101 11101 111100101 11111001 11010111 0111 111100101 1101 1101 1101 01 011111 11111101 11011101
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 762
Words 145
Sentences 10
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 9, 10, 10
Lines Amount 29
Letters per line (avg) 19
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 188
Words per stanza (avg) 50
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 30, 2023

44 sec read
66

Henry Vaughan

Henry Vaughan was a Welsh author, physician and metaphysical poet. Vaughan and his twin brother, the hermetic philosopher and alchemist Thomas Vaughan, were the sons of Thomas Vaughan and his wife Denise of 'Trenewydd', Newton, in Brecknockshire, Wales. Their grandfather, William, was the owner of Tretower Court. Vaughan spent most of his life in the village of Llansantffraed, near Brecon, where he is also buried. more…

All Henry Vaughan poems | Henry Vaughan Books

1 fan

Discuss this Henry Vaughan poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Call" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/18443/the-call>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    6
    hours
    5
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    AA Milne wrote: "A bear, however hard he tries..."
    A "stinks and attracts the flies"
    B "can never stop telling lies"
    C "has very very tired eyes"
    D "grows tubby with no exercise"