Analysis of Holy Sonnet XVI: Father

John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)



Father, part of his double interest
Unto thy kingdome, thy Sonne gives to mee,
His joynture in the knottie Trinitie
Hee keepes, and gives to me his deaths conquest.
This Lambe, whose death, with life the world hath blest,
Was from the worlds beginning slaine, and he
Hath made two Wills, which with the Legacie
Of his and thy kingdome, doe thy Sonnes invest.
Yet such are thy laws, that men argue yet
Whether a man those statutes can fulfill;
None doth; but all-healing grace and spirit
Revive againe what law and letter kill.
Thy lawes abridgement, and thy last command
Is all but love; Oh let this last Will stand!


Scheme ABACCBDCEFGFHH
Poetic Form
Metre 101111010 101111111 110011 1101111110 1111110111 1101010101 11111101 1101111101 1111111101 1001110101 1111101010 011110101 1101001101 1111111111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 624
Words 113
Sentences 5
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 486
Words per stanza (avg) 111
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

33 sec read
56

John Donne

John Donne was an English poet, satirist, lawyer and a cleric in the Church of England. more…

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