On the Quick Transition from Winter to Summer in the Year 1785
Loud blew the North thro' April's pallid days,Nor grass the field, nor leaves the grove obtains,Nor crystal sun-beams, nor the gilded rains,That bless the hours of promise, gently raiseWarmth in the blood, without that fiery blaze,Which makes it boil along the throbbing veins.--Albion, displeas'd, her own lov'd Spring surveysPassing, with volant step, o'er russet plains;Sees her to Summer's fierce embraces speed,Pale, and unrobed.--Faithless! thou well may'st hideClose in his sultry breast thy recreant head,That did'st, neglecting thy distinguish'd Isle,In Winter's icy arms so long abide,While Britain vainly languish'd for thy smile!
Words in this poem
- albion n.
- An ancient name of England, still retained in poetry. [Prob. from the same root as Gael. alp a height or hill. "It may have been bestowed on the land lying behind the white cliffs visible from the coast of Gaul. Alb]
- volant a.
- Passing through the air upon wings, or as if upon wings; flying; hence, passing from place to place; current. [L. volans, -antis, p. pr. of volare to fly: cf. F. volant.]
- isle v. t.
- To cause to become an island, or like an island; to surround or encompass; to island.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
On the Quick Transition from Winter to Summer in the Year 1785 is in the public domain. This text is taken from Original sonnets on various subjects; and odes paraphrased from Horace, Project Gutenberg ebook #27663; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anna Seward, On the Quick Transition from Winter to Summer in the Year 1785, in Original Sonnets on Various Subjects (1799), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #27663, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/seward-sonnets/on-the-quick-transition-from-winter-to-summer-in-the-year-17.html, id L09800.
Form and metre
On the Quick Transition from Winter to Summer in the Year 1785 is 14 lines in a single stanza. It rhymes ABABCDCDEFEFGG, the pattern of the English sonnet. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 94% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 21% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other English sonnets, 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 ABABCDCDEFEFGG daysA · obtainsB · rainsA · raiseB · blazeC · veinsD · surveysC · plainsD · speedE · hideF · headE · isleF · abideG · smileG
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Loud blew the North thro' April's pallid days, | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| Nor grass the field, nor leaves the grove obtains, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Nor crystal sun-beams, nor the gilded rains, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| That bless the hours of promise, gently raise | 10 | ···/·/˘/˘· |
| Warmth in the blood, without that fiery blaze, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Which makes it boil along the throbbing veins.-- | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| Albion, displeas'd, her own lov'd Spring surveys | 10 | /˘˘/····˘/ |
| Passing, with volant step, o'er russet plains; | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| Sees her to Summer's fierce embraces speed, | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| Pale, and unrobed.--Faithless! thou well may'st hide | 10 | ····/˘···· |
| Close in his sultry breast thy recreant head, | 11 | ···/˘··/˘˘· |
| That did'st, neglecting thy distinguish'd Isle, | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| In Winter's icy arms so long abide, | 10 | ·/˘/˘···˘/ |
| While Britain vainly languish'd for thy smile! | 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.