Analysis of Sonnet XLVIII: My Cynthia

Samuel Daniel 1562 (Taunton) – 1619



My Cynthia hath the waters of mine eyes
The ready handmaids on her grace attending
That never fall to ebb, nor ever dries,
For to their flow she never grants an ending.
Th'Ocean never did attend more duly
Upon his Sovereign's course, the night's pale Queen,
Nor paid the impost of his waves more truly,
Than mine to her in truth have ever been.
Yet nought the rock of that hard heart can move,
Where beat these tears with zeal, and fury driveth;
And yet I rather languish in her love
Than I would joy the fairest she that liveth.
I doubt to find such pleasure in my gaining
As now I taste in compass of complaining.


Scheme ABABCDCEFGHGBB
Poetic Form
Metre 11001010111 0101101010 1101111101 11111101110 111010101110 011110111 1101111110 1110011101 1101111111 1111110101 0111010001 1111010111 11111100110 11110101010
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 623
Words 119
Sentences 5
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 484
Words per stanza (avg) 117
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

36 sec read
41

Samuel Daniel

Samuel Daniel was an English poet and historian. more…

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