Sonnet 38
Come Sleepe, ô Sleepe, the certaine knot of peace,The bathing place of wits, the balme of woe,The poore mans wealth, the prysoners release,The indifferent judge betweene the high and lowe,With shield of proofe, shield me from out the presseOf these fierce darts, Dispaire at me doth throw;O make in me those civill warres to cease:I will good trybute pay if thou do so.Take thou of me smooth pillowes, sweetest bed;A chamber deafe of noyse, and blinde of light,A rosie garland, and a wearie head.And if these things (as being thine in right)Move not thy heavie grace, thou shalt in meeLivelier than els where Stellas Image see.
Words in this poem
- wealth n.
- Weal; welfare; prosperity; good. [OE. welthe, from wele; cf. D. weelde luxury. See Weal prosperity.]
- civill a.
- Pertaining to a city or state, or to a citizen in his relations to his fellow citizens or to the state; within the city or state. [L. civilis, fr. civis citizen: cf. F. civil. See City.]
- shalt
- 2d per. sing. of Shall.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Sonnet 38 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 38, in Astrophel and Stella (1591), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #56375, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/sidney-astrophel/sonnet-38.html, id L04794.
Form and metre
Sonnet 38 is 14 lines in a single stanza. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 14% 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-BABCDCDEE peaceA · woeB · releaseA · loweB · presse · throwB · ceaseA · soB · bedC · lightD · headC · rightD · meeE · seeE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Come Sleepe, ô Sleepe, the certaine knot of peace, | 9 | ········· |
| The bathing place of wits, the balme of woe, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| The poore mans wealth, the prysoners release, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| The indifferent judge betweene the high and lowe, | 11 | ·˘/˘······· |
| With shield of proofe, shield me from out the presse | 10 | ·········· |
| Of these fierce darts, Dispaire at me doth throw; | 10 | ·········· |
| O make in me those civill warres to cease: | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| I will good trybute pay if thou do so. | 10 | ·········· |
| Take thou of me smooth pillowes, sweetest bed; | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| A chamber deafe of noyse, and blinde of light, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| A rosie garland, and a wearie head. | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| And if these things (as being thine in right) | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Move not thy heavie grace, thou shalt in mee | 10 | ·········· |
| Livelier than els where Stellas Image see. | 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.