Analysis of Sonnet LVIII: In Former Times
Michael Drayton 1563 (Hartshill) – 1631 (London)
In former times such as had store of coin,
In wars at home, or when for conquests bound,
For fear that some their treasure should purloin,
Gave it to keep to spirits within the ground,
And to attend it them as strongly tied
Till they return'd; home when they never came,
Such as by art to get the same have tried
From the strong Spirit by no means force the same;
Nearer men come, that further flies away,
Striving to hold it strongly in the deep.
E'en as this Spirit, so you alone do play
With those rich beauties Heav'n gives you to keep;
Pity, so left to the coldness of your blood,
Not to avail you, nor do the others good.
Scheme | ABABCDCDEFEFGH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 0101111111 011111111 1111110101 11111100101 0101111101 1101111101 1111110111 10110111101 1011110101 1011110001 111110110111 1111011111 10111010111 11011110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 635 |
Words | 124 |
Sentences | 3 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 35 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 486 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 122 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 38 sec read
- 120 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Sonnet LVIII: In Former Times" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28123/sonnet-lviii%3A-in-former-times>.
Discuss this Michael Drayton poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In