Metaphysical poets, selected poems Contents
Structure and versification in Ascension - Hymn
The iambic quatrains alternate pentameter lines with a tetrameter and a trimeter. The short last line of each stanza therefore moves it towards simplicity. The stanza structure, as with many hymns, is obvious. The overall structure, as in many hymns, moves rather slowly forward towards a final prayer. The prayer is an ‘either-or' request, so leaving God some room for manoeuvre! The open-ended resolutions of many of Vaughan's poems are distinct from Herbert, whose poems tend to lead towards a neat, even triumphant, climax.
Investigating Ascension - Hymn
- In what sense is Ascension – Hymn a metaphysical poem?
- How might the reader view death after reading it?
A term used of speech rhythms in blank verse; an iambic rhythm is an unstressed, or weak, beat followed by a stressed, or strong, beat. It is a rising metre.
A quatrain is a 4-line stanza, usually rhyming.
A line containing five stressed syllables or feet.
A line of verse consisting of four metrical feet (in modern verse) or eight feet (in classical verse).
A line of verse of three feet or stresses.
The technical name for a verse, or a regular repeating unit of so many lines in a poem. Poetry can be stanzaic or non-stanzaic.
A religious song written for worship.
Communication, either aloud or in the heart, with God.
The Bible describes God as the unique supreme being, creator and ruler of the universe.
1. A branch of philosophy
2. The Metaphysical Poets were a group of seventeenth century English poets who used philosophical ideas extensively in their imagery and especially in conceits.
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