“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Introduction

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“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Summary

“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Themes

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  Seizing the Day

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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time”

• Lines 1-2

  Gather ye rose-buds while ye may,
  Old Time is still a-flying;

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 3-4

  And this same flower that smiles today
  Tomorrow will be dying.

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 5-8

  The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
  The higher he’s a-getting,
  The sooner will his race be run,
  And nearer he’s to setting.

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 9-12

  That age is best which is the first,
  When youth and blood are warmer;
  But being spent, the worse, and worst
  Times still succeed the former.

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 13-14

  Then be not coy, but use your time,
  And while ye may, go marry;

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 15-16

  For having lost but once your prime,
  You may forever tarry.

  

  

  

  

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“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Symbols

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  Rosebuds

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  The Sun

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“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Alliteration

  

  

  

  

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• Apostrophe

  

  

  

  

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• Enjambment

  

  

  

  

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• Personification

  

  

  

  

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• Metaphor

  

  

  

  

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• Repetition

  

  

  

  

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• Caesura

  

  

  

  

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“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Ye
• A-flying, a-getting
• Succeed
• Coy
• Prime
• Tarry

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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time”

• Form

• Meter

• Rhyme Scheme

“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Speaker

“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Setting

Literary and Historical Context of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time”

More “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” Resources

• External Resources

  • Herrick's Memorial — See Robert Herrick's memorial in Poets' Corner at Westminster Abbey—where visitors can find some familiar words in the stained glass.

  • A Musical Version — Hear the poem performed as a song.

  • A Short Biography — Read the Poetry Foundation's background on Robert Herrick, with links to more of his poems.

  • The Poem in Pop Culture — Watch a clip from the movie "The Dead Poets Society," in which Robin Williams famously quotes (and interprets) the poem.

  • A Reading of Another Herrick Poem — Read an analysis of another of Herrick's poems—a rather sweeter one! Readers might compare and contrast the way the two poems deal with love and sex.

• LitCharts on Other Poems by Robert Herrick

  • Delight in Disorder

  • To Daffodils