781. To Anthea
Let's call for Hymen, if agreed thou art;Delays in love but crucify the heart.Love's thorny tapers yet neglected lie:Speak thou the word, they'll kindle by-and-bye.The nimble hours woo us on to wed,And Genius waits to have us both to bed.Behold, for us the naked Graces stayWith maunds of roses for to strew the way:Besides, the most religious prophet standsReady to join, as well our hearts as hands.Juno yet smiles; but if she chance to chide,Ill luck 'twill bode to th' bridegroom and the bride.Tell me, Anthea, dost thou fondly dreadThe loss of that we call a maidenhead?Come, I'll instruct thee. Know, the vestal fireIs not by marriage quench'd, but flames the higher.
Words in this poem
- hymen n.
- A fold of muscous membrane often found at the orifice of the vagina; the vaginal membrane.
- crucify v. t.
- To fasten to a cross; to put to death by nailing the hands and feet to a cross or gibbet. [F. crucifier, fr. (assumed) LL. crucificare, for crucifigere, fr, L. crux, crucis, cross + figere to fix, the ending - figere being changed to -ficare, F. -fier]
- bode n.
- An omen; a foreshadowing.
- bridegroom n.
- A man newly married, or just about to be married. [OE. bridegome, brudgume, AS. br (akin to OS. br, D. bruidegom, bruigom, OHG. pr, MHG. briutegome, G. bräutigam); AS. br bride + guma man, akin to Goth. guma, Ic]
- fondly adv.
- Foolishly. Verstegan (1673).
- maidenhead n.
- The state of being a maiden; maidenhood; virginity. [See Maidenhood.]
- instruct a.
- Arranged; furnished; provided. [L. instructus, p. p. of instruere to furnish, provide, construct, instruct; pref. in- in, struere. See Structure.]
- vestal a.
- Of or pertaining to Vesta, the virgin goddess of the hearth; hence, pure; chaste. [L. Vestalis belonging to Vesta, vestal. See Vesta.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
781. To Anthea 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, 781. To Anthea, in Hesperides (1648), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22421, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/herrick-hesperides/781-to-anthea.html, id L05722.
Form and metre
781. To Anthea is 16 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 93%). 95% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 3 lines end 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 AABBCCDDEEFFCCGG artA · heartA · lieB · byeB · wedC · bedC · stayD · wayD · standsE · handsE · chideF · brideF · dreadC · maidenheadC · fireG · higherG
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Let's call for Hymen, if agreed thou art; | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| Delays in love but crucify the heart. | 10 | ˘/···/˘··· |
| Love's thorny tapers yet neglected lie: | 10 | ·/˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| Speak thou the word, they'll kindle by-and-bye. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The nimble hours woo us on to wed, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| And Genius waits to have us both to bed. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Behold, for us the naked Graces stay | 10 | ˘/···/˘/˘· |
| With maunds of roses for to strew the way: | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Besides, the most religious prophet stands | 10 | ˘/··˘/˘/˘· |
| Ready to join, as well our hearts as hands. | 10 | /˘····/··· |
| Juno yet smiles; but if she chance to chide, | 10 | /˘········ |
| Ill luck 'twill bode to th' bridegroom and the bride. | 10 | ·····/···· |
| Tell me, Anthea, dost thou fondly dread | 10 | ··/˘˘··/˘· |
| The loss of that we call a maidenhead? | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| Come, I'll instruct thee. Know, the vestal fire | 11 | ··˘/···/˘/˘ |
| Is not by marriage quench'd, but flames the higher. | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
Notes from the edition 1
Word-glosses from Pollard's edition (Muses' Library, 1891; Project Gutenberg #22421).
- Maunds: baskets · Fondly: foolishly
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.