Poems
I do not love thee!--no! I do not love thee!And yet when thou art absent I am sad;And envy even the bright blue sky above thee,Whose quiet stars may see thee and be glad.
I do not love thee!--yet, I know not why,Whate’er thou dost seems still well done, to me:And often in my solitude I sighThat those I do love are not more like thee!
I do not love thee!--yet, when thou art gone,I hate the sound (though those who speak be dear)Which breaks the lingering echo of the toneThy voice of music leaves upon my ear.
I do not love thee!--yet thy speaking eyes,With their deep, bright, and most expressive blue,Between me and the midnight heaven arise,Oftener than any eyes I ever knew.
I know I do not love thee! yet, alas!Others will scarcely trust my candid heart;And oft I catch them smiling as they pass,Because they see me gazing where thou art.
About this text
Poems 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: Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton, Poems, (1808–1876), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #66619, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/obev-caroline-elizabeth-sarah-norton/i-do-not-love-thee.html, id L16213.
Form and metre
I do not love Thee is 20 lines in 5 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 4 of its 5 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 85%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.2 syllables. 10% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See 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 ABAB theeA · sadB · theeA · gladB
- 2 ABAB whyA · meB · sighA · theeB
- 3 -A-A gone · dearA · tone · earA
- 4 ABAB eyesA · blueB · ariseA · knewB
- 5 ABAB alasA · heartB · passA · artB
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 do not love thee!--no! I do not love thee! | 11 | ··········· |
| And yet when thou art absent I am sad; | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| And envy even the bright blue sky above thee, | 11 | ·/˘/······· |
| Whose quiet stars may see thee and be glad. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| I do not love thee!--yet, I know not why, | 10 | ·········· |
| Whate’er thou dost seems still well done, to me: | 11 | ˘˘/········ |
| And often in my solitude I sigh | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| That those I do love are not more like thee! | 10 | ·········· |
| I do not love thee!--yet, when thou art gone, | 10 | ·········· |
| I hate the sound (though those who speak be dear) | 10 | ·········· |
| Which breaks the lingering echo of the tone | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Thy voice of music leaves upon my ear. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| I do not love thee!--yet thy speaking eyes, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| With their deep, bright, and most expressive blue, | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Between me and the midnight heaven arise, | 10 | ·····/·/˘/ |
| Oftener than any eyes I ever knew. | 10 | /˘˘·/˘··/· |
| I know I do not love thee! yet, alas! | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Others will scarcely trust my candid heart; | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| And oft I catch them smiling as they pass, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Because they see me gazing where thou art. | 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.