The Message

John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)



Send home my long stray'd eyes to me,
Which O too long have dwelt on thee,
Yet since there they have learn'd such ill,
Such forc'd fashions,
And false passions,
That they be
Made by thee
Fit for no good sight, keep them still.

Send home my worthless heart again,
Which no unworthy thought could stain,
Which if't be taught by thine
To make jestings
Of protestings,
And cross both
Word and oath,
Keep it, for then 'tis none of mine.

Yet send me back my heart and eyes,
That I may know, and see thy lies,
And may laugh and joy, when thou
Art in anguish
And dost languish
For some one
That will non,
Or prove as false as thou art now.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 16, 2023

39 sec read
117

Quick analysis:

Scheme AABCCAAB XXDCCEED FFGHHXXG
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 616
Words 126
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8

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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