First Epigram
We deem them moderate, but Enough implore,What barely will suffice, and ask no more:Who say, (O Jove) a competency give,Neither in Luxury, or Want we'd live.But what is that, which these Enough do call?If both the Indies unto some should fall,Such Wealth would yet Enough but onely be,And what they'd term not Want, or Luxury.Among the Suits, O Jove, my humbler take;A little give, I that Enough will make.
Words in this poem
- deem v. t.
- To decide; to judge; to sentence; to condemn. [OE. demen to judge, condemn, AS. d, fr. d doom; akin to OFries. d, OS. ad, D. doemen, OHG. tuommen, Icel. dæma, Sw. dömma, Dan. dömme, Goth. d. See Doom, n., an]
- suffice v. i.
- To be enough, or sufficient; to meet the need (of anything); to be equal to the end proposed; to be adequate. [OE. suffisen, OF. soufire, F. suffire (cf. suffisant, p.pr.), L. sufficere to put under, to substitute, to avail for, to suffice; sub under + facere to make. Se]
- jove n.
- The chief divinity of the ancient Romans; Jupiter. [L. Jupiter, gen. Jovis, OL. Jovis, nom. & gen. for Djovis; akin to E. Tuesday. See Tuesday, and cf. Jupiter.]
- competency n.
- The state of being competent; fitness; ability; adequacy; power. [Cf. F. compétence, from L. competentia agreement.]
- wealth n.
- Weal; welfare; prosperity; good. [OE. welthe, from wele; cf. D. weelde luxury. See Weal prosperity.]
- humbler n.
- One who, or that which, humbles some one.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
First Epigram is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems (1686), Project Gutenberg ebook #41076; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anne Killigrew, First Epigram, in Poems (1686) (1686), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #41076, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/killigrew-poems/first-epigram.html, id L09193.
Form and metre
First Epigram is 10 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 83%). 90% 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.
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 AABBCCDDEE imploreA · moreA · giveB · liveB · callC · fallC · beD · luxuryD · takeE · makeE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| We deem them moderate, but Enough implore, | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘/ |
| What barely will suffice, and ask no more: | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| Who say, (O Jove) a competency give, | 10 | ·····/˘˘˘· |
| Neither in Luxury, or Want we'd live. | 10 | /˘·/˘˘···· |
| But what is that, which these Enough do call? | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| If both the Indies unto some should fall, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Such Wealth would yet Enough but onely be, | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| And what they'd term not Want, or Luxury. | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| Among the Suits, O Jove, my humbler take; | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| A little give, I that Enough will make. | 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.