Analysis of Holy Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One
John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)
Oh, to vex me, contraries meet in one:
Inconstancy unnaturally hath begot
A constant habit; that when I would not
I change in vows, and in devotion.
As humorous is my contrition
As my profane love, and as soon forgot:
As riddlingly distempered, cold and hot,
As praying, as mute; as infinite, as none.
I durst not view heaven yesterday; and today
In prayers and flattering speeches I court God:
Tomorrow I quake with true fear of his rod.
So my devout fits come and go away
Like a fantastic ague; save that here
Those are my best days, when I shake with feare.
| Scheme | ABCAACCADEEDFF |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | |
| Metre | 11111101 010001000101 0101011111 110100010 110011010 1101101101 111101 11011110011 11111010001 01010010111 0111111111 1101110101 100101111 1111111111 |
| Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
| Characters | 555 |
| Words | 106 |
| Sentences | 5 |
| Stanzas | 1 |
| Stanza Lengths | 14 |
| Lines Amount | 14 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 31 |
| Words per line (avg) | 7 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 437 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 104 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
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"Holy Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/22535/holy-sonnet-xix%3A-oh%2C-to-vex-me%2C-contraries-meet-in-one>.
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