Sonnet—To Science
Science! true daughter of Old Time thou art!Who alterest all things with thy peering eyes.Why preyest thou thus upon the poet’s heart,Vulture, whose wings are dull realities?How should he love thee? or how deem thee wise,Who wouldst not leave him in his wanderingTo seek for treasure in the jewelled skies,Albeit he soared with an undaunted wing?Hast thou not dragged Diana from her car?And driven the Hamadryad from the woodTo seek a shelter in some happier star?Hast thou not torn the Naiad from her flood,The Elfin from the green grass, and from meThe summer dream beneath the tamarind tree?
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]
- albeit conj.
- Even though; although; notwithstanding. [OE. al be although it be, where al is our all. Cf. Although.]
- undaunted a.
- Not daunted; not subdued or depressed by fear.
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
- diana n.
- The daughter of Jupiter and Latona; a virgin goddess who presided over hunting, chastity, and marriage; -- identified with the Greek goddess Artemis. [L. Diana.]
- hamadryad n.
- A tree nymph whose life ended with that of the particular tree, usually an oak, which had been her abode. [L. Hamadryas, -adis, Gr. hamadryade. See Same, and Tree.]
- naiad n.
- A water nymph; one of the lower female divinities, fabled to preside over some body of fresh water, as a lake, river, brook, or fountain. [L. naias, -adis, naïs, -idis, a water nymph, Gr naïade. Cf. Naid.]
- elfin a.
- Relating to elves.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Sonnet—To Science is in the public domain. This text is taken from The poetical works of Edgar Allan Poe, Project Gutenberg ebook #79019; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Edgar Allan Poe, Sonnet—To Science, in The Raven, and Other Poems (1827–1849), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #79019, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/poe-poems/sonnet-to-science.html, id L04186.
Form and metre
Sonnet—To Science is 14 lines in a single stanza. It rhymes ABABBCBCDEDEFF. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 81%). 83% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 21% 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 ABABBCBCDEDEFF artA · eyesB · heartA · realitiesB · wiseB · wanderingC · skiesB · wingC · carD · woodE · starD · floodE · meF · treeF
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Science! true daughter of Old Time thou art! | 10 | /˘·/˘····· |
| Who alterest all things with thy peering eyes. | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Why preyest thou thus upon the poet’s heart, | 11 | ·/˘·····/˘· |
| Vulture, whose wings are dull realities? | 10 | /˘····˘/˘˘ |
| How should he love thee? or how deem thee wise, | 10 | ·········· |
| Who wouldst not leave him in his wandering | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| To seek for treasure in the jewelled skies, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Albeit he soared with an undaunted wing? | 11 | ˘/˘····˘/˘· |
| Hast thou not dragged Diana from her car? | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| And driven the Hamadryad from the wood | 10 | ·/˘·/˘˘··· |
| To seek a shelter in some happier star? | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Hast thou not torn the Naiad from her flood, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The Elfin from the green grass, and from me | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| The summer dream beneath the tamarind tree? | 11 | ·/˘····/˘˘· |
On this poem
Notes from the edition 3
Notes by J. Montgomery Gambrill, Selections from Poe (Boston, 1907; Project Gutenberg #8893).
- Line 9 In classical mythology, Diana is the moon goddess, Hamadryad, a wood nymph, Naiad, a water nymph. Consult Gayley's "Classic Myths." Explain the figures of speech.
- Line 13 Elfin: elf, a fairy, from the Anglo-Saxon, refers especially to tiny sprites, fond of mischief and tricks. But there were various kinds of elves, according to the Norse mythology. Consult Gayley's "Classic Myths." Explain the figure.
- Line 14 tamarind-tree: a beautiful, spreading, Oriental tree, with pinnate leaves and showy racemes of yellow flowers variegated with red. What does the line mean?
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