Sesperian Sonnet --> Edmund Spenser

"One Day I Wrote Her Name Upon the Strand"

One day I wrote her name upon the strand
One day I wrote her name upon the strand,
But came the waves and washed it away:
Again I wrote it with a second hand,
But came the tide and made my pains his prey.
Vain man (said she), that dost in vain assay
A mortal thing so to immortalise;
For I myself shall like to this decay,
And eke my name be wiped out likewise.
Not so (quod I); let baser things devise
To die in dust, but you shall live by fame;
My verse your virtues rare shall eternise,
And in the heavens write your glorious name:
Where, whenas death shall all the world subdue,
Our love shall live, and later life renew.


The Sesperian Sonnet has three quatrains and a concluding couplet written in iambic pentameter with the rhyme scheme abab bcbd cdcd ee.

The first thing I noticed about this poem was the repition of the first line. This anaphora shows that the speaker feels attached to this memory and values this woman. He later goes on to say that the tide "made my pains his prey." This shows that he is angry with God for enjoying his pain. This may represent the discontent Spenser has with his religion.

The dialogue between the man and woman shows that they will love each other forever. The woman says she shall "like this decay", meaning she will soon grow old. The man replies that she shall "live by fame" and their love shall live in the heavens forever.

The enjambment between lines nine and ten shows the fascination the speaker has with his lover. He does not want to speak to soon. Instead, he wishes to take time in order to respond correctly.

The purpose of this poem is to show that true love lasts forever.