Analysis of The kiss: a dialogue
Robert Herrick 1591 (London) – 1674 (Dean Prior)
1 Among thy fancies, tell me this,
What is the thing we call a kiss?
2 I shall resolve ye what it is:--
It is a creature born and bred
Between the lips, all cherry-red,
By love and warm desires fed,--
CHOR. And makes more soft the bridal bed.
2 It is an active flame, that flies
First to the babies of the eyes,
And charms them there with lullabies,--
CHOR. And stills the bride, too, when she cries.
2 Then to the chin, the cheek, the ear,
It frisks and flies, now here, now there:
'Tis now far off, and then 'tis near,--
CHOR. And here, and there, and every where.
1 Has it a speaking virtue? 2 Yes.
1 How speaks it, say? 2 Do you but this,--
Part your join'd lips, then speaks your kiss;
CHOR. And this Love's sweetest language is.
1 Has it a body? 2 Ay, and wings,
With thousand rare encolourings;
And as it flies, it gently sings--
CHOR. Love honey yields, but never stings.
Scheme | AAB CCCC DDDD XEXE XAAB FAFF |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 01110111 11011101 11011111 11010101 01011101 11010101 101110101 11110111 11010101 0111110 101011111 11010101 11011111 11110111 1010101001 11010101 11111111 11111111 101110101 11010101 11011 01111101 111011101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 883 |
Words | 179 |
Sentences | 16 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 23 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 108 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 32 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 54 sec read
- 123 Views
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"The kiss: a dialogue" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 2 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/31395/the-kiss%3A--a-dialogue>.
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