Sonnet 26
Though duskie wits dare scorne Astrologie,And fooles can thinke those lampes of purest light,Whose number, waies, greatnes, eternitie,Promising wondrous wonders to invite,To have for no cause birth-right in the skyes.But for to spangle the blacke weedes of Night,Or for some Braule which in that Chamber hie,They should still daunce to please a gazers sight.For mee I doe Nature unydle know,And know great causes, great effects procure,And know those bodies high, raigne on the low.And if these rules did fayle, proofe makes me sure,Who oft foresee my after following case,By onely those two starres in Stella’s face.
Words in this poem
- promising a.
- Making a promise or promises; affording hope or assurance; as, promising person; a promising day.
- wondrous adv.
- In a wonderful or surprising manner or degree; wonderfully. [OE. wonders, adv. (later also adj.). See Wonder, n., and cf. -wards.]
- spangle n.
- A small plate or boss of shining metal; something brilliant used as an ornament, especially when stitched on the dress. [OE. spangel, dim. of AS. spange. See Spang a spangle.]
- foresee v. i.
- To have or exercise foresight.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Sonnet 26 is in the public domain. This text is taken from Sir P.S.: His Astrophel and Stella Wherein the excellence of sweete poesie is concluded, Project Gutenberg ebook #56375; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Philip Sidney, Sonnet 26, in Astrophel and Stella (1591), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #56375, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/sidney-astrophel/sonnet-26.html, id L04782.
Form and metre
Sonnet 26 is 14 lines in a single stanza. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables.
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-BABCDCDEE astrologieA · lightB · eternitieA · inviteB · skyes · nightB · hieA · sightB · knowC · procureD · lowC · sureD · caseE · faceE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Though duskie wits dare scorne Astrologie, | 10 | ·········· |
| And fooles can thinke those lampes of purest light, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Whose number, waies, greatnes, eternitie, | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| Promising wondrous wonders to invite, | 10 | /˘˘/˘/˘·˘/ |
| To have for no cause birth-right in the skyes. | 10 | ·········· |
| But for to spangle the blacke weedes of Night, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Or for some Braule which in that Chamber hie, | 11 | ········/˘· |
| They should still daunce to please a gazers sight. | 10 | ·········· |
| For mee I doe Nature unydle know, | 10 | ····/˘···· |
| And know great causes, great effects procure, | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘/ |
| And know those bodies high, raigne on the low. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| And if these rules did fayle, proofe makes me sure, | 11 | ··········· |
| Who oft foresee my after following case, | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| By onely those two starres in Stella’s face. | 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.