Analysis of Sonnet XXIII: Time, Cruel Time

Samuel Daniel 1562 (Taunton) – 1619



Time, cruel Time, come and subdue that brow
Which conquers all but thee, and thee, too, stays
As if she were exempt from scythe or bow,
From love or years unsubject to decays.
Or art thou grown in league with those fair eyes
That they may help thee to consume our days?
Or dost thou spare her for her cruelties,
Being merciless like thee that no man weighs?
And yet thou seest thy power she disobeys,
Cares not for thee, but lets thee waste in vain,
And prodigal of hours and years betrays
Beauty and youth t'opinion and disdain.
Yet spare her, Time, let her exempted be,
She may become more kind to thee or me.


Scheme ABABCBDBBEBEFF
Poetic Form
Metre 1101100111 1101110111 1110011111 11111101 1111011111 11111101101 111101010 10100111111 011111011 1111111101 01001100101 10011010001 1101100101 1101111111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 619
Words 118
Sentences 6
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 34
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 477
Words per stanza (avg) 116
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 28, 2023

35 sec read
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Samuel Daniel

Samuel Daniel was an English poet and historian. more…

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