Analysis of The Contrite Heart
William Cowper 1731 (Berkhamsted) – 1800 (Dereham)
The Lord will happiness divine
On contrite hearts bestow;
Then tell me, gracious God, is mine
A contrite heart or no?
I hear, but seem to hear in vain,
Insensible as steel;
If aught is felt, 'tis only pain,
To find I cannot feel.
I sometimes think myself inclined
To love Thee if I could;
But often feel another mind,
Averse to all that's good.
My best desires are faint and few,
I fain would strive for more;
But when I cry, "My strength renew!"
Seem weaker than before.
Thy saints are comforted, I know,
And love Thy house of prayer;
I therefore go where others go,
But find no comfort there.
Oh make this heart rejoice or ache;
Decide this doubt for me;
And if it be not broken, break --
And heal it, if it be.
Scheme | ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH BIBI JKJK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain |
Metre | 01110001 101101 11110111 001111 11111101 010011 11111101 111101 1011101 111111 11010101 011111 110101101 111111 11111101 110101 11110011 011111 1111101 111101 11110111 11111 01111101 011111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 739 |
Words | 144 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 23 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 90 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 23 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 43 sec read
- 85 Views
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