The Calm Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: AABBCCDEFFGGHHIEJJEE EEKKLMIINNOOPPQRSSTT UUIILLJJVVWXYYIEOur storm is past and that storm's tyrannous rage | A |
A stupid calm but nothing it doth 'suage | A |
The fable is inverted and far more | B |
A block afflicts now than a stork before | B |
Storms chafe and soon wear out themselves or us | C |
In calms Heaven laughs to see us languish thus | C |
As steady'as I can wish that my thoughts were | D |
Smooth as thy mistress' glass or what shines there | E |
The sea is now and as the isles which we | F |
Seek when we can move our ships rooted be | F |
As water did in storms now pitch runs out | G |
As lead when a fir'd church becomes one spout | G |
And all our beauty and our trim decays | H |
Like courts removing or like ended plays | H |
The fighting place now seamen's rags supply | I |
And all the tackling is a frippery | E |
No use of lanthorns and in one place lay | J |
Feathers and dust to day and yesterday | J |
Earth's hollownesses which the world's lungs are | E |
Have no more wind than the upper vault of air | E |
We can nor lost friends nor sought foes recover | E |
But meteor like save that we move not hover | E |
Only the calenture together draws | K |
Dear friends which meet dead in great fishes' jaws | K |
And on the hatches as on altars lies | L |
Each one his own priest and own sacrifice | M |
Who live that miracle do multiply | I |
Where walkers in hot ovens do not die | I |
If in despite of these we swim that hath | N |
No more refreshing than our brimstone bath | N |
But from the sea into the ship we turn | O |
Like parboil'd wretches on the coals to burn | O |
Like Bajazet encag'd the shepherds' scoff | P |
Or like slack sinew'd Samson his hair off | P |
Languish our ships Now as a myriad | Q |
Of ants durst th' emperor's lov'd snake invade | R |
The crawling gallies sea gaols finny chips | S |
Might brave our pinnaces now bed rid ships | S |
Whether a rotten state and hope of gain | T |
Or to disuse me from the queasy pain | T |
Of being belov'd and loving or the thirst | U |
Of honour or fair death out push'd me first | U |
I lose my end for here as well as I | I |
A desperate may live and a coward die | I |
Stag dog and all which from or towards flies | L |
Is paid with life or prey or doing dies | L |
Fate grudges us all and doth subtly lay | J |
A scourge 'gainst which we all forget to pray | J |
He that at sea prays for more wind as well | V |
Under the poles may beg cold heat in hell | V |
What are we then How little more alas | W |
Is man now than before he was He was | X |
Nothing for us we are for nothing fit | Y |
Chance or ourselves still disproportion it | Y |
We have no power no will no sense I lie | I |
I should not then thus feel this misery | E |
John Donne
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