Holy Sonnet V: I Am A Little World Made Cunningly

John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)



I am a little world made cunningly
Of elements, and an angelic sprite;
But black sin hath betrayed to endless night
My worlds both parts, and (oh!) both parts must die.
You which beyond that heaven which was most high
Have found new spheres, and of new lands can write,
Pour new seas in mine eyes, that so I might
Drown my world with my weeping earnestly,
Or wash it if it must be drowned no more:
But oh it must be burnt! alas the fire
Of lust and envy have burnt it heretofore,
And made it fouler: Let their flames retire,
And burn me, O Lord, with a fiery zeal
Of Thee and Thy house, which doth in eating heal.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 21, 2023

37 sec read
160

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBCCBBADEDFAA
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 608
Words 124
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

John Donne

John Donne was an English poet, satirist, lawyer and a cleric in the Church of England. more…

All John Donne poems | John Donne Books

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    "Holy Sonnet V: I Am A Little World Made Cunningly" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/22514/holy-sonnet-v:-i-am-a-little-world-made-cunningly>.

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