At Penshurst
Had Dorothea lived when mortals madeChoice of their deities, this sacred shadeHad held an altar to her power, that gaveThe peace and glory which these alleys have;Embroider'd so with flowers where she stood,That it became a garden of a wood.Her presence has such more than human grace,That it can civilise the rudest place;And beauty too, and order, can impart,Where nature ne'er intended it, nor art.The plants acknowledge this, and her admire,No less than those of old did Orpheus' lyre;If she sit down, with tops all tow'rds her bow'd,They round about her into arbours crowd;Or if she walk, in even ranks they stand,Like some well-marshall'd and obsequious band.Amphion so made stones and timber leapInto fair figures from a confused heap;And in the symmetry of her parts is foundA power like that of harmony in sound.Ye lofty beeches, tell this matchless dame,That if together ye fed all one flame,It could not equalise the hundredth partOf what her eyes have kindled in my heart!Go, boy, and carve this passion on the barkOf yonder tree, which stands the sacred markOf noble Sidney's birth; when such benign,Such more than mortal-making stars did shine,That there they cannot but for ever proveThe monument and pledge of humble love;His humble love whose hope shall ne'er rise higher,Than for a pardon that he dares admire.
Words in this poem
- civilise v. t.
- To reclaim from a savage state; to instruct in the rules and customs of civilization; to educate; to refine. [Cf. F. civilizer, fr.L. civilis civil. See Civil.]
- admire v. t.
- To regard with wonder or astonishment; to view with surprise; to marvel at. [F. admirer, fr. L. admirari; ad + mirari to wonder, for smirari, akin to Gr. smi, and E. smile.]
- obsequious a.
- Promptly obedient, or submissive, to the will of another; compliant; yielding to the desires of another; devoted. [L.obsequiosus, fr. obsequium compliance, fr. obsequi, fr. obsequi: cf. F. obséquieux, See Obsequent, and cf. Obsequy.]
- dame n.
- A mistress of a family, who is a lady; a womam in authority; especially, a lady. [F. dame, LL. domna, fr. L. domina mistress, lady, fem. of dominus master, ruler, lord; akin to domare to tame, subdue. See Tame, and cf. Dam mother, Dan, Danger]
- equalise v. t.
- To make equal; to cause to correspond, or be like, in amount or degree as compared; as, to equalize accounts, burdens, or taxes. [Cf. F. égaliser.]
- yonder adv.
- At a distance, but within view. [OE. yonder, ýonder; cf. OD. ginder, Goth. jaindr there. Yond, adv.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
At Penshurst is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham, Project Gutenberg ebook #12322; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Edmund Waller, At Penshurst, in Poetical Works (1645–1668), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12322, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/waller-denham/at-penshurst.html, id L09024.
Form and metre
At Penshurst is 32 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 94% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.0 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 28% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in heroic couplets, 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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNNOO-- madeA · shadeA · gaveB · haveB · stoodC · woodC · graceD · placeD · impartE · artE · admireF · lyreF · bow'dG · crowdG · standH · bandH · leapI · heapI · foundJ · soundJ · dameK · flameK · partL · heartL · barkM · markM · benignN · shineN · proveO · loveO · higher · admire
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Had Dorothea lived when mortals made | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘· |
| Choice of their deities, this sacred shade | 10 | ···/˘˘·/˘· |
| Had held an altar to her power, that gave | 10 | ···/˘··/·· |
| The peace and glory which these alleys have; | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Embroider'd so with flowers where she stood, | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘··· |
| That it became a garden of a wood. | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| Her presence has such more than human grace, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| That it can civilise the rudest place; | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And beauty too, and order, can impart, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| Where nature ne'er intended it, nor art. | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘··· |
| The plants acknowledge this, and her admire, | 10 | ··˘/˘···˘/ |
| No less than those of old did Orpheus' lyre; | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| If she sit down, with tops all tow'rds her bow'd, | 10 | ·········· |
| They round about her into arbours crowd; | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Or if she walk, in even ranks they stand, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Like some well-marshall'd and obsequious band. | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| Amphion so made stones and timber leap | 9 | ······/˘· |
| Into fair figures from a confused heap; | 10 | ···/˘··˘/· |
| And in the symmetry of her parts is found | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| A power like that of harmony in sound. | 10 | ·/···/˘˘·· |
| Ye lofty beeches, tell this matchless dame, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| That if together ye fed all one flame, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| It could not equalise the hundredth part | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Of what her eyes have kindled in my heart! | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Go, boy, and carve this passion on the bark | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Of yonder tree, which stands the sacred mark | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Of noble Sidney's birth; when such benign, | 10 | ·/˘/˘···˘/ |
| Such more than mortal-making stars did shine, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| That there they cannot but for ever prove | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| The monument and pledge of humble love; | 10 | ·/˘˘···/˘· |
| His humble love whose hope shall ne'er rise higher, | 11 | ·/˘······/˘ |
| Than for a pardon that he dares admire. | 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.