1062. To Sir George Parry, Doctor of the CIVIL Law
I have my laurel chaplet on my headIf, 'mongst these many numbers to be read,But one by you be hugg'd and cherished.
Peruse my measures thoroughly, and whereYour judgment finds a guilty poem, thereBe you a judge; but not a judge severe.
The mean pass by, or over, none contemn;The good applaud; the peccant less condemn,Since absolution you can give to them.
Stand forth, brave man, here to the public sight;And in my book now claim a twofold right:The first as doctor, and the last as knight.
Words in this poem
- chaplet n.
- A garland or wreath to be worn on the head. [F. chapelet, dim. of OF. chapel hat, garland, dim. fr. LL. cappa. See Cap, and cf. Chapelet, Chapeau.]
- peruse v. t.
- To observe; to examine with care. [Pref. per- + use.]
- contemn v. t.
- To view or treat with contempt, as mean and despicable; to reject with disdain; to despise; to scorn. [L. contemnere, -temptum; con- + temnere to slight, despise: cf. OF. contemner.]
- peccant n.
- An offender. Whitlock.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
1062. To Sir George Parry, Doctor of the CIVIL Law is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #22421; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Robert Herrick, 1062. To Sir George Parry, Doctor of the CIVIL Law, in Hesperides (1648), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22421, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/herrick-hesperides/1062-to-sir-george-parry-doctor-of-the-civil-law.html, id L05962.
Form and metre
1062. To Sir George Parry, Doctor of the CIVIL Law is 12 lines in 4 stanzas of 3 lines each. It is in rhyming couplets, 67% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 91%). 92% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 25% 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 AA- headA · readA · cherished
- 2 AAA whereA · thereA · severeA
- 3 AAA contemnA · condemnA · themA
- 4 AAA sightA · rightA · knightA
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.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| I have my laurel chaplet on my head | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| If, 'mongst these many numbers to be read, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| But one by you be hugg'd and cherished. | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| Peruse my measures thoroughly, and where | 10 | ˘/·/˘/˘˘·· |
| Your judgment finds a guilty poem, there | 10 | ·/˘··/˘/˘· |
| Be you a judge; but not a judge severe. | 10 | ········˘/ |
| The mean pass by, or over, none contemn; | 10 | ········˘/ |
| The good applaud; the peccant less condemn, | 10 | ··˘/·/˘·˘/ |
| Since absolution you can give to them. | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Stand forth, brave man, here to the public sight; | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And in my book now claim a twofold right: | 10 | ·······//· |
| The first as doctor, and the last as knight. | 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.