Analysis of To The Queen
As those who pass the Alps do say,
The Rocks which first oppose their way,
And so amazing-High do show,
By fresh Ascents appear but low,
And when they come unto the last,
They scorn the dwarfish Hills th' ave past.
So though my Muse at her first flight,
Thought she had chose the greatest height,
And (imp'd with Alexander's Name)
Believ'd there was no further Fame:
Behold an Eye wholly Divine
Vouchsaf'd upon my Verse to Shine!
And from that time I'gan to treat
With Pitty him the World call'd Great;
To smile at his exalted Fate,
Unequal (though Gigantick) State.
I saw that Pitch was not sublime,
Compar'd with this which now I climb;
His Glories sunk, and were unseen,
When once appear'd the Heav'n-born Queen:
Victories, Laurels, Conquer'd Kings,
Took place among inferiour things.
Now surely I shall reach the Clouds,
For none besides such Vertue shrouds:
Having scal'd this with holy Strains,
Nought higher but the Heaven remains!
No more I'll Praise on them bestow,
Who to ill Deeds their Glories owe;
Who build their Babels of Renown,
Upon the poor oppressed Crown,
Whole Kingdoms do depopulate,
To raise a Proud and short-Liv'd State:
I prize no more such Frantick Might,
Than his that did with Wind-Mills Fight:
No, give me Prowess, that with Charms
Of Grace and Goodness, not with Harms,
Erects a Throne i'th' inward Parts,
And Rules mens Wills, but with their Hearts;
Who with Piety and Vertue thus
Propitiates God, and Conquers us.
O that now like Araunah here,
Altars of Praises I could rear,
Suiting her worth, which might be seen
Like a Queens Present, to a Queen!
‘Alone she stands for Vertues Cause,
‘When all decry, upholds her Laws:
‘When to Banish her is the Strife,
‘Keeps her unexil'd in her Life;
‘Guarding her matchless Innocence
‘From Storms of boldest Impudence;
‘In spight of all the Scoffs and Rage,
‘And Persecutions of the Age,
‘Owns Vertues Altar, feeds the Flame,
‘Adores her much-derided Name;
‘While impiously her hands they tie,
‘Loves her in her Captivity;
‘Like Perseus saves her, when she stands
‘Expos'd to the Leviathans.
‘So did bright Lamps once live in Urns,
‘So Camphire in the water burns,
‘So Ætna's Flames do ne'er go out,
‘Though Snows do freeze its head without.
How dares bold Vice unmasked walk,
And like a Giant proudly stalk?
When Vertue's so exalted seen,
Arm'd and Triumphant in the Queen?
How dares its Ulcerous Face appear,
When Heavenly Beauty is so near?
But so when God was close at hand,
And the bright Cloud did threatning stand
(In fight of Israel) on the Tent,
They on in their Rebellion went.
O that I once so happy were,
To find a nearer Shelter there!
Till then poor Dove, I wandering fly
Between the Deluge and the Skie:
Till then I Mourn, but do not sing,
And oft shall plunge my wearied wing:
If her bless'd hand vouchsafe the Grace,
I'th' Ark with her to give a place,
I safe from danger shall be found,
When Vice and Folly others drown'd.
Scheme | AABBCC DDEEFFXGGG HHIIJJ KKLLBBMMGGDDNN OOPPXQII XXRRXASSEETX XAAXUU VVIIQQWWXX XXTV YYZZ1 1 |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110111 01110111 01010111 1110111 01111001 110111111 11111011 11110101 0110101 01111101 01111001 1011111 01111111 1110111 11110101 010111 11111101 01111111 11010001 11010111 10010101 110111 11011101 1101111 10111101 110101001 11111101 11111101 1111101 0101011 1101010 11010111 1111111 11111111 11110111 11010111 0101111101 01111111 11100011 110101 111111 10110111 10011111 10110101 0111111 11010101 11100101 101001 1001100 111101 01110101 0010101 1110101 01010101 110111 10000100 110010111 01101 11111101 1100101 1111111 11111101 1111011 01010101 1110101 10010001 1111101 110010111 11111111 0011111 011100101 11010101 11111100 11010101 111111001 01010001 11111111 01111101 1011101 1111101101 11110111 11010101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 2,877 |
Words | 518 |
Sentences | 16 |
Stanzas | 10 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 10, 6, 14, 8, 12, 6, 10, 4, 6 |
Lines Amount | 82 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 226 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 52 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:42 min read
- 55 Views
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"To The Queen" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/3228/to-the-queen>.
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