George Herbert (1593–1633) was a Welsh poet and Anglican priest who is considered one of the leading “metaphysical poets” of the 17th Century, a group that also included Herbert’s contemporary and fellow cleric, John Donne. Considered one of the greatest of English religious poets, Herbert also stands out as a literary great in English prosody. Besides full command of the English language, Herbert also exhibits stunning feats of imagination in his poems, especially in his experiments with verse forms — including pattern poems, whereby a poem’s physical shape on the page, sometimes printed sideways, matches the poem’s subject matter. “Easter Wings” printed above is an example of this sort of pattern poem.
George Herbert (1593–1633) was a Welsh poet and Anglican priest who is considered one of the leading “metaphysical poets” of the 17th Century, a group that also included Herbert’s contemporary and fellow cleric, John Donne. Considered one of the greatest of English religious poets, Herbert also stands out as a literary great in English prosody. Besides full command of the English language, Herbert also exhibits stunning feats of imagination in his poems, especially in his experiments with verse forms — including pattern poems, whereby a poem’s physical shape on the page, sometimes printed sideways, matches the poem’s subject matter. “Easter Wings” printed above is an example of this sort of pattern poem.
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