Analysis of An Olde Lyric.

Horace Smith 1836 (London) – 1922



Oh, saw ye my own true love, I praye,
My own true love so sweete?
For the flowers have lightly toss'd awaye
The prynte of her faery feete.
Now, how can we telle if she passed us bye?
Is she darke or fayre to see?
Like sloes are her eyes, or blue as the skies?
Is't braided her haire or free?

Oh, never by outward looke or signe,
My true love shall ye knowe;
There be many as fayre, and many as fyne,
And many as brighte to showe.
But if ye coude looke with angel's eyes,
Which into the soule can see,
She then would be seene as the matchless Queene
Of Love and of Puritie.


Scheme ABABACDC EFEFDCEB
Poetic Form
Metre 111111111 111111 101011011 011011 1111111111 1111111 1110111101 11100111 110110111 111111 11101101011 0101111 11111111 1010111 111111011 11011
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 571
Words 122
Sentences 10
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 8
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 217
Words per stanza (avg) 59
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Submitted on August 03, 2020

Modified on March 28, 2023

37 sec read
2

Horace Smith

Horace Smith was an English poet and novelist, perhaps best known for his participation in a sonnet-writing competition with Percy Bysshe Shelley. It was of him that Shelley said: "Is it not odd that the only truly generous person I ever knew who had money enough to be generous with should be a stockbroker? He writes poetry and pastoral dramas and yet knows how to make money, and does make it, and is still generous." more…

All Horace Smith poems | Horace Smith Books

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