A Sonnet upon Sonnets -
Fourteen, + Sonneteer thy praises sings;
What magic myst'ries in that number lie:
Yon hen hath fourteen eggs beneath her wings,
That fourteen chickens to the roost may fly.-
Fourteen full pounds the Jockey's stone must be;
His age fourteen, a horse's prime is past:
Fourteen long hours to oft the Bard must fast,
Fourteen bright bumpers - bliss ne'er must see.-
Before fourteen, a dozen yields the strife;
Before fourteen, e'en thirteen's strength is vain;
Fourteen good years - a woman gives us life;
Fourteen good men - we lose that life again. -
What Incubrations can be more upon it?
Fourteen good measured verses make a sonnet.
Fourteen, + Sonneteer thy praises sings;
What magic myst'ries in that number lie:
Yon hen hath fourteen eggs beneath her wings,
That fourteen chickens to the roost may fly.-
Fourteen full pounds the Jockey's stone must be;
His age fourteen, a horse's prime is past:
Fourteen long hours to oft the Bard must fast,
Fourteen bright bumpers - bliss ne'er must see.-
Before fourteen, a dozen yields the strife;
Before fourteen, e'en thirteen's strength is vain;
Fourteen good years - a woman gives us life;
Fourteen good men - we lose that life again. -
What Incubrations can be more upon it?
Fourteen good measured verses make a sonnet.
Key details
- Archive number
- NTS/02/25/BRN/02/197
- Alt. number
- 3.6290
- Date
- 1788
- On display
- No
- Creator
- Burns, Robert (Author)
- Archive number
- NTS/02/25/BRN/02/197
- Alt. number
- 3.6290
- Date
- 1788
- On display
- No
- Creator
- Burns, Robert (Author)
Description
A Sonnet upon Sonnets.
Begins: "Fourteen, a sonneteer thy praises sings". with another poem on the reverse.
Written in 1788, this sonnet is said to be Burns's first attempt at the form. The meaning of this sonnet is focused on the form of sonnets, namely fourteen lines written in iambic pentameter coupled with a strong rhyme-scheme.
Straightaway, Robert Burns focuses on the theme "fourteen". Indeed, Burns makes twelve associations with the number; some are pastoral: "fourteen eggs" a hen has "beneath her wings" and "fourteen chickens [that] to the roost may fly." (N.B. Burns was not only a keen observer of human-kind but also the natural world!) Burns makes further associations, but note: each association has its own line and each line is written with consistent metre - in short "Fourteen good measured verses make a sonnet."
Straightaway, Robert Burns focuses on the theme "fourteen". Indeed, Burns makes twelve associations with the number; some are pastoral: "fourteen eggs" a hen has "beneath her wings" and "fourteen chickens [that] to the roost may fly." (N.B. Burns was not only a keen observer of human-kind but also the natural world!) Burns makes further associations, but note: each association has its own line and each line is written with consistent metre - in short "Fourteen good measured verses make a sonnet."
Archive information
Themes
Hierarchy
-
Robert Burns, collection of poems and songs
(
a sub-fonds is a subdivision in the archival material)
- A Sonnet upon Sonnets
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