58, Monday, May 7, 1711, argued against ancient Greek poems in the shape of eggs, &c. This is the Bodleian MS (also called MS Tanner) page 1 of 'Easter-wings:įor a different placement see copies of the Williams Manuscript (also called MS. the poem is printed as seen in the scanned copy below, making it look more like its title. With thee Let me combine And feel this day thy victorie: For, if I imp my wing on thine Affliction shall advance the flight in me.Įditor's note: The poem is usually printed in modern anthologies as seen above. My tender age in sorrow did beginne: And still with sicknesses and shame Thou didst so punish sinne, That I became Most thinne. Lord, who createdst man in wealth and store, Though foolishly he lost the same, Decaying more and more, Till he became Most poore: With thee Oh let me rise As larks, harmoniously, And sing this day thy victories: Then shall the fall further the flight in me. It creates a flow in the way the poem sounds, also mimicking the wings which are represented visually.George Herbert: Easter-wings (1633) from The Temple (1633), by George Herbert: This specific meter structures the poem also auditorily. So the syllabic pattern of the poem goes: 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 – in both stanzas.

in both stanza, each line is shortened by two syllables going to the next line.

there are ten syllables in each first and last line of the two stanzas.

the middle four lines of each stanza have a specific number of syllables: four syllables in lines 4 and 7, and two syllables in lines 5 and 6.

You will also notice that most lines stand on their own because of the punctuation that Herbert uses and capitalising the first letter of each line. This also underscores the imagery of the story: even with man’s fall from grace, God still keeps balance and order within the universe and eventually brings man back to Him. When we look at the rhyme scheme, Herbert uses ‘ababcdcd’ in both stanzas, which offers structure to the poem. As Herbert progresses from the first stanza to the second, the nature of man also progresses from God’s creation and the gifts provided therein to the fall of man and the required acceptance of Christ. This just means the words and lines are arranged on the form a visual image (in this case the wings of an angel to offer a thematic view of the human state). Since I studied this poem at university, I can tell you it is written in a pattern poetry called ‘ascarmen figuration’, or ‘shaped verse’. Then shall the fall further the flight in me.Īffliction shall advance the flight in me.

Lord, who createdst man in wealth and store, And before you read this poem, just look at it! Look at how beautiful it is!

Easter wings poem