To the Morning: Satisfaction for Sleepe

Richard Crashaw (1613–1649) · 1646–1652

iambic pentameter · heroic couplets · 58 lines · from Steps to the Temple and Other Poems

What succour can I hope my Muse shall sendWhose drowsinesse hath wrong'd the Muses' friend?What hope, Aurora, to propitiate thee,Vnlesse the Muse sing my apologie?O in that morning of my shame! when ILay folded up in Sleepe's captivity,How at the sight did'st thou draw back thine eyes,Into thy modest veyle? how didst thou riseTwice dy'd in thine owne blushes! and did'st runTo draw the curtaines, and awake the sun!Who, rowzing his illustrious tresses, came,And seeing the loath'd object, hid for shameHis head in thy faire bosome, and still hidesMee from his patronage; I pray, he chides:And pointing to dull Morpheus, bids me takeMy owne Apollo, try if I can makeHis Lethe be my Helicon: and seeIf Morpheus have a Muse to wait on mee.Hence 'tis, my humble fancie finds no wings,No nimble rapture starts to Heaven, and bringsEnthusiasticke flames, such as can giveMarrow to my plumpe genius, make it liveDrest in the glorious madnesse of a Muse,Whose feet can walke the milky way, and chuseHer starry throne; whose holy heats can warmeThe grave, and hold up an exalted armeTo lift me from my lazy vrne, to climbeVpon the stooped shoulders of old Time,And trace Eternity--But all is dead,All these delicious hopes are buriedIn the deepe wrinckles of his angry brow,Where Mercy cannot find them: but O thouBright lady of the Morne! pitty doth lyeSo warme in thy soft brest, it cannot dye.Have mercy then, and when he next shall riseO meet the angry God, invade his eyes,And stroake his radiant cheekes; one timely kisseWill kill his anger, and revive my blisse.So to the treasure of thy pearly deaw,Thrice will I pay three teares, to show how trueMy griefe is; so my wakefull lay shall knockeAt th' orientall gates, and duly mockeThe early larkes' shrill orizons, to beAn anthem at the Daye's nativitie.And the same rosie-finger'd hand of thine,That shuts Night's dying eyes, shall open mine.But thou, faint God of Sleepe, forget that IWas ever known to be thy votary.No more my pillow shall thine altar be,Nor will I offer any more to theeMy selfe a melting sacrifice; I'me borneAgaine a fresh child of the buxome Morne,Heire of the sun's first beames. Why threat'st thou so?Why dost thou shake thy leaden scepter? goe,Bestow thy poppy upon wakefull Woe,Sicknesse, and Sorrow, whose pale lidds ne're knowThy downie finger; dwell upon their eyes,Shut in their teares: shut out their miseries.

Words in this poem 16
succour v. t.
tiono run to, or run to support; hence, to help or relieve when in difficulty, want, or distress; to assist and deliver from suffering; to relieve; as, to succor a besieged city. [OE. socouren, OF. sucurre, soucourre, secorre, F. secourir, L. succurrere, succursum, to run under, run to the aid of, help, succor; sub under + currere to run.]
shall v. i.
To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
aurora n.
The rising light of the morning; the dawn of day; the redness of the sky just before the sun rises. [L. aurora, for ausosa, akin to Gr. ushas, and E. east.]
propitiate v. t.
To appease to render favorable; to make propitious; to conciliate. [L. propitiatus, p. p. of propitiare to propitiate, fr. propitius favorable. See Propitious.]
didst
, the 2d pers. sing. imp. of Do.
morpheus n.
The god of dreams.
lethe n.
A river of Hades whose waters when drunk caused forgetfulness of the past.
helicon n.
A mountain in Boeotia, in Greece, supposed by the Greeks to be the residence of Apollo and the Muses.
glorious a.
Exhibiting attributes, qualities, or acts that are worthy of or receive glory; noble; praiseworthy; excellent; splendid; illustrious; inspiring admiration; as, glorious deeds. [OF. glorios, glorious, F. glorieux, fr. L. gloriosus. See Glory, n.]
starry a.
Abounding with stars; adorned with stars.
angry a.
Troublesome; vexatious; rigorous. [See Anger.]
morne a.
Of or pertaining to the morn; morning.
wakefull a.
Not sleeping; indisposed to sleep; watchful; vigilant.
orientall a.
Of or pertaining to the orient or east; eastern; concerned with the East or Orientalism; -- opposed to occidental; as, Oriental countries. [L. orientalis: cf. F. oriental.]
anthem v. t.
To celebrate with anthems.
dwell v. i.
To delay; to linger. [OE. dwellen, dwelien, to err, linger, AS. dwellan to deceive, hinder, delay, dwelian to err; akin to Icel. dvelja to delay, tarry, Sw. dväljas to dwell, Dan. dv]

Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.

About this text

To the Morning: Satisfaction for Sleepe is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Works of Richard Crashaw, Volume I, Project Gutenberg ebook #38549; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: Richard Crashaw, To the Morning: Satisfaction for Sleepe, in Steps to the Temple and Other Poems (1646–1652), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #38549, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/crashaw-poems/to-the-morning-satisfaction-for-sleepe.html, id L12109.

Form and metre

To the Morning: Satisfaction for Sleepe is 58 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 76% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 5 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 50% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.

See other poems in heroic couplets, other poems in iambic pentameter.

Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.

Rhyme words, stanza by stanza

The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.

  1. 1 AAB-B-CCDDEEFFGGHHII--JJKK--LLMMNNOOPP--QQR-SSR-RRTTUUUUVV sendA · friendA · theeB · apologie · iB · captivity · eyesC · riseC · runD · sunD · cameE · shameE · hidesF · chidesF · takeG · makeG · seeH · meeH · wingsI · bringsI · give · live · museJ · chuseJ · warmeK · armeK · climbe · time · deadL · buriedL · browM · thouM · lyeN · dyeN · riseO · eyesO · kisseP · blisseP · deaw · true · knockeQ · mockeQ · beR · nativitie · thineS · mineS · iR · votary · beR · theeR · borneT · morneT · soU · goeU · woeU · knowU · eyesV · miseriesV
Scansion, line by line

Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.

LineSyl.Stress
What succour can I hope my Muse shall send10·/˘·······
Whose drowsinesse hath wrong'd the Muses' friend?10·······/˘·
What hope, Aurora, to propitiate thee,11······˘/˘˘·
Vnlesse the Muse sing my apologie?9·········
O in that morning of my shame! when I10···/˘·····
Lay folded up in Sleepe's captivity,10·/˘···˘/˘˘
How at the sight did'st thou draw back thine eyes,10··········
Into thy modest veyle? how didst thou rise11···/˘······
Twice dy'd in thine owne blushes! and did'st run10·····/˘···
To draw the curtaines, and awake the sun!10···/˘·˘/··
Who, rowzing his illustrious tresses, came,10····˘/˘/˘·
And seeing the loath'd object, hid for shame10·/˘··/˘···
His head in thy faire bosome, and still hides10··········
Mee from his patronage; I pray, he chides:10···/˘˘····
And pointing to dull Morpheus, bids me take10·/˘··/˘···
My owne Apollo, try if I can make10··˘/˘·····
His Lethe be my Helicon: and see10·/˘··/˘···
If Morpheus have a Muse to wait on mee.10·/˘·······
Hence 'tis, my humble fancie finds no wings,10···/˘·····
No nimble rapture starts to Heaven, and brings10·/˘/˘··/··
Enthusiasticke flames, such as can give9·········
Marrow to my plumpe genius, make it live10/˘···/˘···
Drest in the glorious madnesse of a Muse,10···/˘·····
Whose feet can walke the milky way, and chuse10·····/˘···
Her starry throne; whose holy heats can warme10·/˘··/˘···
The grave, and hold up an exalted arme10······˘/˘·
To lift me from my lazy vrne, to climbe10·····/˘···
Vpon the stooped shoulders of old Time,9···˘/˘···
And trace Eternity--But all is dead,10··˘/˘˘····
All these delicious hopes are buried9··˘/˘··/˘
In the deepe wrinckles of his angry brow,9······/˘·
Where Mercy cannot find them: but O thou10·/˘/˘·····
Bright lady of the Morne! pitty doth lye11·/˘··/˘····
So warme in thy soft brest, it cannot dye.10·······/˘·
Have mercy then, and when he next shall rise10·/˘·······
O meet the angry God, invade his eyes,10···/˘·˘/··
And stroake his radiant cheekes; one timely kisse10···/˘··/˘·
Will kill his anger, and revive my blisse.10···/˘·˘/··
So to the treasure of thy pearly deaw,10···/˘··/˘·
Thrice will I pay three teares, to show how true10··········
My griefe is; so my wakefull lay shall knocke11···········
At th' orientall gates, and duly mocke10··˘/˘··/˘·
The early larkes' shrill orizons, to be10·/˘·······
An anthem at the Daye's nativitie.10·/˘·······
And the same rosie-finger'd hand of thine,10···/˘/˘···
That shuts Night's dying eyes, shall open mine.10···/˘··/˘·
But thou, faint God of Sleepe, forget that I10······˘/··
Was ever known to be thy votary.10·/˘····/˘˘
No more my pillow shall thine altar be,10···/˘··/˘·
Nor will I offer any more to thee10···/˘/˘···
My selfe a melting sacrifice; I'me borne10···/˘/˘···
Againe a fresh child of the buxome Morne,11·········/˘
Heire of the sun's first beames. Why threat'st thou so?10/·········
Why dost thou shake thy leaden scepter? goe,10·····/˘···
Bestow thy poppy upon wakefull Woe,11˘/·/˘······
Sicknesse, and Sorrow, whose pale lidds ne're know10···/˘·····
Thy downie finger; dwell upon their eyes,10·/˘/˘·····
Shut in their teares: shut out their miseries.10·······/˘˘

The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.

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