Analysis of Sonnet XII: Cupid, Because Thou

Sir Philip Sidney 1554 (Penshurst, Kent) – 1586 (Zutphen)



Cupid, because thou shin'st in Stella's eyes,
That from her locks, thy day-nets, noe scapes free,
That those lips swell, so full of thee they be,
That her sweet breath makes oft thy flames to rise,

That in her breast thy pap well sugared lies,
That he Grace gracious makes thy wrongs, that she
What words so ere she speak persuades for thee,
That her clear voice lifts thy fame to the skies:

Thou countest Stella thine, like those whose powers
Having got up a breach by fighting well,
Cry, "Victory, this fair day all is ours."

Oh no, her heart is such a citadel,
So fortified with wit, stored with disdain,
That to win it, is all the skill and pain.


Scheme ABBA ABBA CDC DEE
Poetic Form
Metre 10011110101 1101111111 1111111111 1011111111 1001111101 1111011111 1111110111 1011111101 1110111110 1011011101 11001111110 110111010 110111101 1111110101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 658
Words 125
Sentences 3
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 3, 3
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 36
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 125
Words per stanza (avg) 31
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

37 sec read
62

Sir Philip Sidney

Sir Philip Sidney was an English poet, courtier, scholar and soldier who is remembered as one of the most prominent figures of the Elizabethan age. more…

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