Analysis of An Imitation of Spenser

William Blake 1757 (Soho) – 1827 (London)



Golden Apollo, that thro' heaven wide
Scatter'st the rays of light, and truth's beams,
In lucent words my darkling verses dight,
And wash my earthy mind in thy clear streams,
That wisdom may descend in fairy dreams,
All while the jocund hours in thy train
Scatter their fancies at thy poet's feet;
And when thou yields to night thy wide domain,
Let rays of truth enlight his sleeping brain.
For brutish Pan in vain might thee assay
With tinkling sounds to dash thy nervous verse,
Sound without sense; yet in his rude affray,
(For ignorance is Folly's leasing nurse
And love of Folly needs none other's curse)
Midas the praise hath gain'd of lengthen'd ears,
For which himself might deem him ne'er the worse
To sit in council with his modern peers,
And judge of tinkling rimes and elegances terse.

And thou, Mercurius, that with wingèd brow
Dost mount aloft into the yielding sky,
And thro' Heav'n's halls thy airy flight dost throw,
Entering with holy feet to where on high
Jove weighs the counsel of futurity;
Then, laden with eternal fate, dost go
Down, like a falling star, from autumn sky,
And o'er the surface of the silent deep dost fly:

If thou arrivest at the sandy shore
Where nought but envious hissing adders dwell,
Thy golden rod, thrown on t 1000 he dusty floor,
Can charm to harmony with potent spell.
Such is sweet Eloquence, that does dispel
Envy and Hate that thirst for human gore;
And cause in sweet society to dwell
Vile savage minds that lurk in lonely cell

O Mercury, assist my lab'ring sense
That round the circle of the world would fly,
As the wing'd eagle scorns the tow'ry fence
Of Alpine hills round his high aëry,
And searches thro' the corners of the sky,
Sports in the clouds to hear the thunder's sound,
And see the wingèd lightnings as they fly;
Then, bosom'd in an amber cloud, around
Plumes his wide wings, and seeks Sol's palace high.

And thou, O warrior maid invincible,
Arm'd with the terrors of Almighty Jove,
Pallas, Minerva, maiden terrible,
Lov'st thou to walk the peaceful solemn grove,
In solemn gloom of branches interwove?
Or bear'st thy AEgis o'er the burning field,
Where, like the sea, the waves of battle move?
Or have thy soft piteous eyes beheld
The weary wanderer thro' the desert rove?
Or does th' afflicted man thy heav'nly bosom move?


Scheme ABABBCXCCXDEDDFDFD EGEGAXGG EHEHHEHH IGIEGJGJG KLKLLXLALL
Poetic Form
Metre 1001011101 1010111011 010111101 0111010111 1101010101 110110011 1011011101 0111111101 111111101 1101011110 11001111101 101110111 110011101 0111011101 1001111101 1101111101 1101011101 0111001011 01111111 1101010101 0111110111 10011011111 1101011 1101010111 1101011101 0100101010111 11110101 1111001011 11011111101 1111001101 1111001101 1001111101 0101010011 1101110101 1100011111 1101010111 101101011 11111101 0101010101 100111011 0101110111 110110101 1111011101 01110010100 1101010101 1001010100 1111010101 01011101 111110100101 1101011101 1111111 01010010101 1111010111101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 2,248
Words 407
Sentences 9
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 18, 8, 8, 9, 10
Lines Amount 53
Letters per line (avg) 34
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 359
Words per stanza (avg) 81
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

2:08 min read
164

William Blake

William Blake was an English poet, painter and printmaker. more…

All William Blake poems | William Blake Books

26 fans

Discuss this William Blake poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "An Imitation of Spenser" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/39088/an-imitation-of-spenser>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    22
    hours
    32
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the poem "There Will Come Soft Rain"?
    A Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
    B Percy Bysshe Shelley
    C Sara Teasdale
    D Rainer Maria Rilke