Alison
Bytuene Mershe ant AverilWhen spray biginneth to spring,The lutel foul hath hire wylOn hyre kid to synge:Ich libbe in love-longingeFor semlokest of alle thynge,He may me blisse bringe,Icham in hire bandoun.An hendy hap ichabbe y-hent,Ichot from hevene it is me sent,From alle wymmen my love is lentAnt lyht on Alisoun.
On heu hire her is fayr ynoh,Hire browe broune, hire eye blake;With lossum chere he on me loh;With middel smal ant wel y-make;Bote he me wolle to hire takeFor to buen hire owen make,Long to lyven ichulle forsakeAnt feye fallen adoun.An hendy hap, etc.
Nihtes when I wende and wake,For-thi myn wonges waxeth won;
Levedi, al for thine sakeLonginge is y-lent me on.In world his non so wyter monThat al hire bountè telle con;Hire swyre is whittore than the swon,Ant feyrest may in toune.An hendy hap, etc.
Icham for wowyng al for-wake,Wery so water in wore;Lest eny reve me my makeIchabbe y-yerned yore.Betere is tholien whyle soreThen mournen evermore.Geynest under gore,Herkne to my roun--An hendy hap, etc.
Words in this poem
- alle conj.
- Although; if. See All, conj.
- chere n.
- The face; the countenance or its expression. [OE. chere face, welcome, cheer, OF. chiere, F. chère, fr. LL. cara face, Gr. , L. cerebrum brain, G. hirn, and E. cranium.]
- reve n.
- An officer, steward, or governor. [Usually written reeve.] [See Reeve.]
- yore adv.
- In time long past; in old time; long since. [OE. , yare, , AS. geára;akin to geár a year, E. year. Year.]
- evermore adv.
- During eternity; always; forever; for an indefinite period; at all times; -- often used substantively with for.
- roun v. i.
- To whisper. [obs.] Gower. [AS. r, fr. r a rune, secret, mystery; akin to G. raunen to whisper. See Rune.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Alison is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250-1900, Project Gutenberg ebook #66619; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anonymous, Alison, in Poems, text of Project Gutenberg ebook #66619, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/obev-anonymous-english/alison.html, id L15886.
Form and metre
Alison is 39 lines in 5 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 83%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.1 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 26% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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 -A-ABABCDDDC averil · springA · wyl · syngeA · longingeB · thyngeA · bringeB · bandounC · hentD · sentD · lentD · alisounC
- 2 -A-AAAA-- ynoh · blakeA · loh · makeA · takeA · makeA · forsakeA · adoun · etc
- 4 -AAA--- sake · onA · monA · conA · swon · toune · etc
- 5 ABABBBB-- wakeA · woreB · makeA · yoreB · soreB · evermoreB · goreB · roun · etc
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Bytuene Mershe ant Averil | 7 | ····/˘˘ |
| When spray biginneth to spring, | 7 | ······· |
| The lutel foul hath hire wyl | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| On hyre kid to synge: | 5 | ····· |
| Ich libbe in love-longinge | 6 | ······ |
| For semlokest of alle thynge, | 7 | ······· |
| He may me blisse bringe, | 5 | ····· |
| Icham in hire bandoun. | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| An hendy hap ichabbe y-hent, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Ichot from hevene it is me sent, | 9 | ········· |
| From alle wymmen my love is lent | 8 | ········ |
| Ant lyht on Alisoun. | 6 | ······ |
| On heu hire her is fayr ynoh, | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| Hire browe broune, hire eye blake; | 8 | /˘··/˘·· |
| With lossum chere he on me loh; | 8 | ········ |
| With middel smal ant wel y-make; | 8 | ········ |
| Bote he me wolle to hire take | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| For to buen hire owen make, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Long to lyven ichulle forsake | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| Ant feye fallen adoun. | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| An hendy hap, etc. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| Nihtes when I wende and wake, | 6 | ······ |
| For-thi myn wonges waxeth won; | 7 | ······· |
| Levedi, al for thine sake | 7 | ······· |
| Longinge is y-lent me on. | 7 | ······· |
| In world his non so wyter mon | 8 | ········ |
| That al hire bountè telle con; | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Hire swyre is whittore than the swon, | 9 | /˘······· |
| Ant feyrest may in toune. | 6 | ······ |
| An hendy hap, etc. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| Icham for wowyng al for-wake, | 8 | ········ |
| Wery so water in wore; | 7 | /˘·/˘·· |
| Lest eny reve me my make | 7 | ······· |
| Ichabbe y-yerned yore. | 5 | ····· |
| Betere is tholien whyle sore | 8 | ········ |
| Then mournen evermore. | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Geynest under gore, | 5 | ····· |
| Herkne to my roun-- | 4 | ···· |
| An hendy hap, etc. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
Notes from the edition 1
Quiller-Couch's glosses on the hard words, from The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250–1900, chosen and edited by Arthur Quiller-Couch (Oxford, 1900; Project Gutenberg #66619)
- Stanza 1 on hyre lud] in her language. ich libbe] I live. semlokest] seemliest. he] she. bandoun] thraldom. hendy] gracious. y hent] seized, enjoyed. ichot] I wot. lyht] alighted. hire her] her hair. lossum] lovesome. loh] laughed. bote he] unless she. buen] be. make] mate. feye] like to die. nihtes] at night. wende] turn. for-thi] on that account. wonges waxeth won] cheeks grow wan. _2._ levedi] lady. y-lent me on] arrived to me. so wyter mon] so wise a man. swyre] neck. may] maid. for-wake] worn out with vigils. so water in wore] as water in a weir. reve] rob. y-yerned yore] long been distressed. tholien] to endure. geynest under gore] comeliest under woman’s apparel. roun] tale, lay.
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