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The Spring
shepherd Amyntas and his lover Chloris nap in the crisp shade
POEM TEXT beneath the sycamore tree. Everything is in tune with the
spring; it's only the woman I love who carries June in her eyes
1 Now that the winter's gone, the earth hath lost while in her heart it's still January.
2 Her snow-white robes, and now no more the frost
3 Candies the grass, or casts an icy cream THEMES
4 Upon the silver lake or crystal stream;
5 But the warm sun thaws the benumbed earth,
THE HOPELESSNESS OF UNREQUITED
6 And makes it tender; gives a sacred birth
LOVE
7 To the dead swallow; wakes in hollow tree
“The Spring” juxtaposes the warmth and hope of
8 The drowsy cuckoo, and the humble-bee.
spring with the chilly disinterest of the speaker’s “love.” The
9 Now do a choir of chirping minstrels bring
speaker spends the first half of the poem simply observing and
10 In triumph to the world the youthful Spring. admiring spring’s effect on the natural world: everything is
11 The valleys, hills, and woods in rich array thawing, waking up, and coming alive. But even as the world
12 Welcome the coming of the long'd-for May. around him softens and transforms, the woman the speaker
13 Now all things smile, only my love doth lour; longs for remains as frigid as “January” itself. Love isn’t bound
14 Nor hath the scalding noonday sun the power by the rhythms of the seasons, the poem implies, and not even
15 To melt that marble ice, which still doth hold the tender beauty of spring can melt an icy heart.
16 Her heart congeal'd, and makes her pity cold. The speaker presents spring as a season filled with beauty,
17 The ox, which lately did for shelter fly warmth, and delight. “Now that the winter's gone,” the speaker
18 Into the stall, doth now securely lie says, the world is no longer dressed in “snow-white robes” and
19 In open fields; and love no more is made “frost” no longer “Candies” (or decorates) “the grass.” Instead,
“the warm sun thaws the benumbed earth.” In other words,
20 By the fireside, but in the cooler shade
feeling is seeping back into the world. Things that were once
21 Amyntas now doth with his Chloris sleep sleeping come back to life: the sun's warmth “gives a sacred
22 Under a sycamore, and all things keep birth / To the dead swallow” and “wakes in a hollow tree / The
23 Time with the season; only she doth carry drowsy cuckoo, and the humble-bee.” “The valleys, hills, and
24 June in her eyes, in her heart January. woods” that surround the speaker are adorned in a “rich array”
(or an opulent display) of fresh growth, and everyone is thrilled
that “the long’d-for May” has finally arrived.
But while spring makes the world around the speaker more
SUMMARY “tender,” it does nothing to soften the woman he loves—nor to
Now that winter is over, the snow that covered the earth like a soothe his heartache. While everything else smiles with
white robe has melted away, frost no longer coats the grass like spring’s delights, the speaker’s beloved continues to “lour” (or
crystalized sugar, and the silver lake and clear stream are no frown). Even the hot “noonday sun” can’t “melt” the “marble ice”
longer covered with a milky layer of ice. The sun's warmth melts that grips her heart, turning even her “pity cold.” In other words,
the unfeeling earth, softening it, and revives the hibernating she has no sympathy for the speaker whatsoever; she is
swallow; it wakes up the sleepy cuckoo bird and the little bee. unmoved by his desire for her. The world may be transformed
Now a chorus of chirping birds sings to usher in spring's by spring, but for her, nothing has changed.
triumphant return. The landscape, adorned in a rich range of The “ox” that only recently had to hide in the barn to stay warm
colors, welcomes the eagerly anticipated arrival of May. Now now sleeps happily in the sunlit, grassy fields, and “Amyntas” (a
that everything is smiling, my love is the only one who frowns. lovesick shepherd) lounges with “Chloris” (a Greek goddess of
Not even the burning heat of the midday sun can melt the rock- spring, flowers, and new growth) beneath a tree. But the
hard ice that grips her heart and makes it so she doesn't even speaker remains sad and alone. Love—or, at least this particular
feel bad for me. The ox, which only recently sought shelter from woman’s love—doesn’t keep “Time with the season,” and her
the winter in the barn, now lounges about in the open pasture. heart remains in “January.” Spring’s light and warmth ultimately
Couples no longer make love inside by the hearth; now the cast the speaker’s heartache in starker relief, as the fresh joy of

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his surroundings only reminds him of the hopelessness of his
longing. LINE-BY
LINE-BY-LINE
-LINE ANAL
ANALYSIS
YSIS
LINES 1-4
Where this theme appears in the poem:
Now that the winter's gone, the earth hath lost
• Lines 1-24 Her snow-white robes, and now no more the frost
Candies the grass, or casts an icy cream
THE BEAUTY OF NATURE Upon the silver lake or crystal stream;
The speaker begins "The Spring" by announcing that winter is
Although “The Spring” ends with the speaker feeling
as hopeless as ever about his unrequited love, it also over. He describes the shifting seasons using vivid imagery that,
simply celebrates the beauty and delights of the natural world. perhaps surprisingly for a poem about the beauty of spring,
presents winter as rather lovely in its own right.
Nature, in this poem, is lovely and deeply connected, bound to
predictable and comforting rhythms. The snow has melted, a process the speaker compares to the
personified earth taking off her "snow-white robes." "The frost"
The speaker particularly savors the fresh warmth of spring, but
no longer "Candies the grass"—another image that suggests
he also recognizes that winter isn’t without its charms. The
image of winter as a woman in “snow-white robes” seems both winter's frigidity and delicate beauty: that "frost" made
elegant and maybe even cozy. The speaker also says that the the grass look like it was coated with hardened sugar syrup. It
frost “Candies the grass,” as though coating it in a layer of also cast "an icy cream / Upon the silver lake or crystal stream."
Again, the imagery speaks to both winter's quiet cold and
sweet, shiny sugar syrup. The image of a layer of “icy cream”
surreal beauty: until recently, the world was coated in a layer of
atop the “silver lake” and “crystal stream” further conveys the
unique loveliness of the season, presenting it as a time of creamy white, and the icy waters of the lake and stream
delicate, glimmering sweetness and beauty. sparkled. The world in winter seems pristine and elegant but
also stiff and unfeeling—and spring's warmth loosens
Of course, winter also seems lonely and quiet, which is why it’s everything up.
a good thing that it gives way to spring: a time of new life,
The delicate sounds of these lines bring their imagery to life.
awakening, and “tender[ness].” Creatures celebrate the “long’d
Crisp alliter
alliteration
ation ("C
Candies," "ccasts," "ccream," "ccrystal") and
for May”; they can’t wait for spring, which might even seem
even more special coming on the heels of winter’s cold. Indeed, consonance ("lakke," "lostt," "frostt," "castts," "crysttal sttream") add
to the feeling of a sharp, fragile world covered in glittering ice
the poem suggests that part of the beauty of the seasons is
and snow. Sibilance evokes winter's stillness and quiet:
their predictability. The seasons happen in the same order
every year, and there’s comfort in knowing what to look
Candies the grass
ss, or casstss an iccy cream
forward to. While the speaker’s love is hopeless, winter always
Upon the silver lake or crysstal stream;
contains within it the promise of spring.
The speaker presents this spring as a welcome antidote to the Lines 1-4 are also enjambed
enjambed, each line flowing smoothly into
cold and stillness of winter, a season when the world comes the next and building momentum and anticipation. The poem
alive. Creatures seem celebratory, happy, calm, and safe, pulls readers down the page, deeper into this quickly thawing
emerging from their slumbers in “hollow tree[s]” to a world world.
bright with colorful blooms and radiating warmth. Even the
“valleys, hills, and woods” are resplendent with new life, and Finally, these lines establish the poem's form. "The Spring" is
wandering musicians play their “triumphant” music to herald written in rhyming couplets of iambic pentameter: a meter
the arrival of the season. Nature is a peaceful, comforting place consisting of five iambs (poetic feet with an
in the poem, and spring is a time of love and delight (for unstressed-stressed
stressed pattern) per line. These are also called
everyone but the speaker, of course). heroic couplets. Take lines 1-2:

Now that | the wint

wint- | er's gone
gone, | the earth | hath lost
Where this theme appears in the poem:
Her snow
snow- | white robes
robes, | and now | no more | the
• Lines 1-12 frost

The meter here isn't always perfect (indeed, a totally perfect

meter might make for a stiff, rigid-sounding poem!). For
example, some might argue that line 1 actually begins with a
trochee (stressed
stressed-unstressed; "NowNow that"), and the second line
contains a spondee (stressed
stressed-stressed
stressed; "white
white robes
robes"): Such

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variations make can certain words stand out to readers. Still, long'd-for May." The speaker is again personifying the natural
the overall rhythm is recognizably iambic, marked by a steady, world, imbuing it with joy and delight. Everything appears to be
bouncy beat. in sync, happily and harmoniously enjoying the start of the
season.
LINES 5-8
But the warm sun thaws the benumbed earth, LINES 13-16
And makes it tender; gives a sacred birth Now all things smile, only my love doth lour;
To the dead swallow; wakes in hollow tree Nor hath the scalding noonday sun the power
The drowsy cuckoo, and the humble-bee. To melt that marble ice, which still doth hold
The snow and frost have all disappeared, and "the warm sun" is Her heart congeal'd, and makes her pity cold.
thawing "the benumbed earth." The word "benumbed" suggests Line 13 marks a turning point in the poem. The speaker has just
not just that the earth was frozen, but also unfeeling; the sun's spent 12 lines describing the delightful beauty of spring, which
warmth now "makes it tender"—literally softer and makes "all things smile"—all things, that is, except for the woman
metaphorically sweeter, more sensitive and emotional. This the speaker loves. While the rest of the world grows "tender"
tenderness will contrast with the icy lack of pity displayed by and joyful in the sun's warmth, this woman "doth lour": she
the speaker's beloved later in the poem. scowls or frowns.
The sun also "gives a sacred birth / To the dead swallow" (a kind Not even spring's "scalding noonday sun"—the sun at its
of songbird). This is a metaphorical birth, building on an old hottest, in the middle of the day—is enough "to melt that
(mistaken) belief that swallows hibernate for the winter (rather marble ice" that encompasses this woman's heart. Her heart is
than migrate to warmer climates); this "birth" really refers to "congeal'd," or frozen solid, stuck in metaphorical winter while
the bird waking up from hibernation. This a "sacred birth" the rest of the world moves on. Whereas the "the warm sun
because the sun is like God here in its ability to raise the bird thaws the benumbed earth, / And makes it tender," her icy heart
from the "dead." Again, this image makes the speaker's beloved "makes her pity cold." She won't "thaw" or grow soft and tender
seem all the more cold and even inhuman later in the poem; not toward the speaker; she remains "benumbed," unmoved by his
even this God-like sun can get her heart pounding. affection.
The sun also "wakes" the sleepy "cuckoo" (another kind of bird) The frequent alliter
alliteration
ation of these lines makes them more
and "the humble-bee" (a pun on "bumblebee" that makes the dramatic. The liquid /l/ sounds of "llove doth lour" highlight the
bug seem sweet and meek). These images are sweet and woman's disinterest, while the hissing sibilance of "sscalding
delightful. In short, the whole world is becoming vibrant, noonday sun" evokes the sizzle of that midday heat. The sounds
refreshed, and renewed. Everything is starting to stir now that of lines 15-16 are particularly intense:
the weather is changing.
To melt that marble ice, which still doth hold
LINES 9-12 Her heart congeal'd, and makes her pity cold.
Now do a choir of chirping minstrels bring
In triumph to the world the youthful Spring. The huffing /h/ sounds of "hold / Her heart" help to convey the
The valleys, hills, and woods in rich array speaker's exasperation, while the sharpness of "ccongeal'd" and
Welcome the coming of the long'd-for May. "p
pity cold" emphasizes this woman's complete lack of softness
The speaker continues to paint a vivid picture of spring's toward the speaker.
arrival. The twittering birds are "a choir of chirping minstrels": a
LINES 17-22
metaphor comparing the birds to a chorus of troubadours, or
wandering musicians, whose cheerful songs "bring / In triumph The ox, which lately did for shelter fly
to the world the youthful Spring." That is, the birds' song Into the stall, doth now securely lie
triumphantly ushers in the arrival of "youthful Spring." The In open fields; and love no more is made
sounds of lines 9-10 are bright and bouncy, the crisp and By the fireside, but in the cooler shade
plosive consonants ("cchoir," "ch
chirp
ping," "ttriumph," "sp
pring," etc.) Amyntas now doth with his Chloris sleep
evoking the birds' vibrant, entertaining music. Under a sycamore,
The birds aren't the only ones excited about the changing The speaker describes another happy springtime scene to
season, either: the landscape itself—with all its "valleys, hills, highlight just how out of sync his beloved is with the rest of the
and woods"—is decked out in "rich array": cloaked in vibrant world. Only recently, the "ox" had to hide out inside a barn to
color as flowers blossom, leaves return to the trees, and the stay warm; now that spring has arrived, however, it sleeps
snows melt to reveal the greenery underneath. It's as though soundly in the "open fields." Whereas everything is focused on
the earth has dressed up to "Welcome the coming of the simply surviving the colder months, spring is a time for

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happiness and ease. speaker that his love is unrequited. As if to evoke the speaker's
Likewise, while lovers snuggled up "By the fireside" all winter, hopelessness, the poem ends with a metrically irregular line:
they now lounge in "the cooler shade" outdoors. The speaker
has specific lovers in mind here: "Amyntas" and "Chloris," who June in | her eyes
es, | in her heart | Jan
Janu- | ary.
now rest "Under a sycamore" tree. Chloris was the Greek
goddess of spring, flowers, and new growth. The name It's as though the speaker has given up trying to make his words
"Amyntas" was used for various lovesick shepherds in 17th- fit into iambic pentameter. Ending the poem with two trochees
century pastoral literature. It might allude specifically to a play in a row creates a falling rhythm that contrasts with the rising
called The Queene's Arcadia by the English poet and playwright rhythm present throughout the rest of the poem. The poem
Samuel Daniel; the poem features a character named Amyntas peters out, making it sound like the speaker is giving up.
who was hopelessly in love with Chloris. The allusion
emphasizes the speaker's bad luck: even Amyntas has acquired
his heart's content with Chloris, yet the speaker has not SYMBOLS
managed to woo the woman he loves.
Note that from line 17 until the poem's end, every line is JANUARY/WINTER
enjambed
enjambed: The poem leans on traditional nature symbolism
throughout. Spring, here, represents freshness,
The ox, which lately did for shelter fly vitality, and rebirth, while winter represents stagnancy, frigidity,
Into the stall, doth now securely lie and sorrow. While the spring is filled with stirring swallows and
In open fields; and love no more is made buzzing bees, the winter landscape seems cast in ice: lovey,
By the fireside, but in the cooler shade perhaps, but also still, quiet, and "benumbed"—totally unfeeling.
Am
Amyntas
yntas now doth with his Chloris sleep When the speaker says in the poem's final line that his
Under a sycamore, [...] beloved's heart is filled with "January," this symbolizes her
emotional coldness towards the speaker. While the rest of the
And so on. This steady enjambment propels the reader through world is warming up, her heart remains frozen solid, as
the poem. The forward pull of the lines mirrors the pull of "benumbed" as the earth in winter and as still as the frozen
spring, which urges creatures outside, into the sunlight. The "lake."
only one to resist spring's call is the speaker's beloved.
Where this symbol appears in the poem:
LINES 22-24
and all things keep • Lines 1-6: “Now that the winter's gone, the earth hath
Time with the season; only she doth carry lost / Her snow-white robes, and now no more the frost /
June in her eyes, in her heart January. Candies the grass, or casts an icy cream / Upon the silver
lake or crystal stream; / But the warm sun thaws the
The poem's final lines hammer home the contrast between the benumbed earth, / And makes it tender”
speaker's beloved and the rest of the world. The speaker says • Line 24: “June in her eyes, in her heart January.”
that "all things keep / Time with the season"—that is, everything
exists in harmony with the changing season; the world takes its
cues from spring's brightness and warmth, growing "tender"
and loving in return. POETIC DEVICES
And yet, the speaker's beloved remains cold towards him. She's METAPHOR
the "only" thing who holds "January" in her heart, even as she
has "June in her eyes." Despite watching the spring unfold all The speaker of "The Spring" describes the changing seasons
around her, this woman's heart won't thaw. The alliter
alliteration
ation of using rich, evocative metaphors
metaphors. For example, in lines 1-2, the
"JJune" and "JJanuary" emphasizes the juxtaposition between speaker describes the melting snow as "the earth" taking off
what this woman sees (what she "carries in her eyes") and what "Her snow-white robes." This is also an example of
season it is within her own heart. The speaker might also be personification
personification. The image conveys the elegant beauty of
nodding towards the woman's beauty; her eyes carry "June" in winter and is also a bit suggestive—perhaps hinting at the
the sense that they appear young and vibrant. Her heart, speaker's unfulfilled longing (maybe he wishes his actual
meanwhile, is icy cold. beloved would loosen her robes!).

In the end, then, the poem suggests that not even the loveliness This personification continues when the speaker says that the
of spring can't cheer the speaker up. The weather might be nice sun "thaws the benumbed earth." Calling the earth "benumbed"
and the flowers might be blooming, but this just reminds the suggests not just that it's frozen solid but also that it's unfeeling

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(until the sun comes and warms it up, that is). The sun also create antithesis
antithesis: nature smiles but his "love doth lour," or
"gives sacred birth / To the dead swallow." This is a frown.
metaphorical birth: the sun's warmth nudges creatures out of
hibernation. (Carew is building on an old mistaken belief that Where P
Personification
ersonification appears in the poem:
swallows hibernate for the winter.) The sun also "wakes" sleepy
birds and bumblebees. Birds (and perhaps insects) become a • Lines 1-2: “the earth hath lost / Her snow-white robes”
metaphorical "choir of chirping minstrels"—a chorus of singing • Lines 5-7: “But the warm sun thaws the benumbed
earth, / And makes it tender; gives a sacred birth / To the
musicians whose song ushers in the season.
dead swallow”
All these vibrant metaphors emphasize the power and beauty • Lines 9-13: “Now do a choir of chirping minstrels bring /
of spring. They make the world feel vividly alive—in turn In triumph to the world the youthful Spring. / The valleys,
emphasizing the stark juxtaposition between the vibrant, joyful hills, and woods in rich array / Welcome the coming of
season and the icy demeanor of the speaker's beloved. Not the long'd-for May. / Now all things smile”
even "the scalding noonday sun" can "melt that marble ice" that
grips his beloved's heart. Her heart is stiff and unyielding as IMAGERY
stone. Even as the world around her softens, the woman's heart
Imagery plays an important role in "The Spring." The speaker's
is stuck in "January." She remains cold and untouchable,
vivid, vibrant depictions of the warming world highlight the
unmoved by the changing seasons.
loveliness and harmony of spring—in turn, making the speaker's
heartache seem all the more illogical and isolating.
Where Metaphor appears in the poem:
The speaker describes winter as a time of stark beauty: the
• Lines 1-2: “the earth hath lost / Her snow-white robes” grass is covered with frost crystals, making it look "candied"
• Lines 2-3: “now no more the frost / Candies the grass” with sugar; clear, sparkling lakes and streams are topped by a
• Line 5: “the benumbed earth” layer of "icy cream"; and the earth is wrapped in "snow-white
• Lines 6-7: “gives a sacred birth / To the dead swallow” robes." The sun melts all this away, thawing the solid earth until
• Line 9: “a choir of chirping minstrels” it grows soft and "tender." Readers can easily picture the lovely
• Lines 14-16: “Nor hath the scalding noonday sun the yet cold landscapes of winter giving way to the lush greenery of
power / To melt that marble ice, which still doth hold / spring, when the air is filled with the sounds of chirping birds
Her heart congeal'd, and makes her pity cold.” and buzzing bees and the "valleys, hills, and woods" don a "rich
• Lines 23-24: “only she doth carry / June in her eyes, in
array" of colors and growth.
her heart January.”
The sun at its height is "scalding," beating down on the
blooming earth below. And yet, not even this intense heat,
PERSONIFICATION
which seems to bounce off the page, can "melt that marble ice"
The speaker personifies nature throughout the poem. In of the speaker's beloved's heart—which has "congeal'd," or
making nature seem more human, the speaker emphasizes just frozen solid. The juxtaposition between the images of warmth
how out of step his beloved is with the rest of the world. and softness with icy firmness highlights the fact that this
The speaker says that the earth sheds her "snow-white robes" woman's feelings are out of step with "the season," in the
in spring, for example, comparing the snow-covered earth to a speaker's estimation at least.
woman dressed in pure white clothing. The earth was Animals like the "ox" lounge in "open fields," and lovers
"benumbed," or hard and unfeeling, throughout the winter, but "Amyntas" and "Chloris" relax in the refreshing shade of a
the "warm sun" of spring makes her "tender." The sun becomes sycamore tree. All this imagery evokes the lush, welcoming
a female figure here as well, able to give "sacred birth / To the beauty of spring—something that casts the speaker's broken
dead swallow" (that is, the sun wakes the bird from heart in harsher light.
hibernation). All these references to female figures reflect the
fact that unrequited love is on the speaker's mind: the speaker
Where Imagery appears in the poem:
wishes the woman that he loves would behave more like the
earth and let the sun thaw her icy heart. • Lines 1-6
• Lines 9-11
The speaker also calls singing birds "a choir of chirping
• Lines 14-16
minstrels," or musicians, and declares that the "valleys, hills, and
• Lines 17-22
woods" all "Welcome the coming of the long'd for May." The
landscape and all its creatures are emotional beings in the
poem; they eagerly await the end of winter and "smile" upon ALLITERATION
spring's arrival. In personifying nature, the speaker is able to "The Spring" uses alliter
alliteration
ation to make its language and imagery

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more dramatic and intense. Listen to the mixture of crisp /c/ Casts (Line 3) - Sends out.
and soft /s/ sounds in lines 3-4, for example, which conveys the Icy cream (Line 3) - The speaker is describing the color of the
sharp, brittle, quiet beauty of the world in winter: frost over lake.

Candies the grass, or casts an icy cream Benumbed (Line 5) - That is, numbed; rendered unable to feel.
Upon the silver lake or crystal stream; Here, the speaker uses the word metaphorically
metaphorically, to describe
the earth in its frozen state.
Consonance adds to the effect ("grass ss," "casts
sts," "iccy," "lakke," Swallow (Line 7) - A kind of songbird.
"cryst
stal," "st
stream"). Overall, the lines simply sound like winter! Drowsy cuckoo (Line 8) - Sleepy songbird.
Alliteration also calls attention to important ideas in the poem, Humble-bee (Line 8) - Bumblebee.
as with the shared sounds of "llove" and "llour" in line 13. This
Chirping minstrels (Line 9) - The speaker is metaphorically
alliteration highlights the fact that the speaker's beloved
comparing the "chirping" birds (and, perhaps, insects) to
continues to scowl even as the rest of the world lights up in
traveling musicians.
response to the changing season.
Rich array (Line 11) - A lavish display; a variety of colors.
Alliteration appears in the next few lines as well:
Long'd-for (Line 12) - A contraction of "longed for." Carew is
Nor hath the scalding noonday sun the power using a contraction here so that readers know to pronounce
To melt that marble ice, which still doth hold the phrase with two syllables rather than three (long-ed-for).
Her heart congeal'd, and makes her pity cold. Doth (Line 13, Line 15, Line 18, Line 21, Line 23) - An old-
fashioned form of "does."
The hissing sibilance of "scalding"/"sun" suggests the sizzle of
Lour (Line 13) - Frown or scowl.
the midday heat, those huffing /h/ sounds evoke the speaker's
exasperation. The poem's language is heightened and dramatic Congeal'd (Line 16) - This is a contraction of "congealed," which
here, which helps to convey the speaker's immense anguish. means solidified or frozen.
Finally, the alliteration of "JJune" and "JJanuary" hammers home Amyntas (Line 21) - The name of a lovesick shepherd who
the juxtaposition between the world this woman sees and what often appears in pastoral poetry in Carew's day.
she feels inside. It might be warming up all around her, but her Chloris (Line 21) - The name of Amyntas's lover, who often
heart remains trapped in ice. appears in pastoral poetry. Also the Greek goddess of spring,
flowers, and fresh growth.
Where Alliter
Alliteration
ation appears in the poem: Sycamore (Line 22) - A kind of deciduous tree.
• Line 3: “Candies,” “casts,” “cream”
• Line 4: “silver,” “crystal,” “stream”
• Line 6: “sacred” FORM, METER, & RHYME
• Line 7: “dead,” “swallow,” “hollow”
• Line 8: “drowsy,” “humble”
FORM
• Line 13: “love,” “lour” "The Spring" consists of a single stanza that can be broken up
• Line 14: “scalding,” “sun” into 12 heroic couplets
couplets: rh
rhyming
yming pairs of iambic pentameter
• Line 15: “melt,” “marble,” “hold” (lines with five iambs, poetic feet with a da-DUM
DUM rhythm). The
• Line 16: “Her,” “heart,” “congeal'd,” “cold” steady heartbeat of iambic pentameter and the quick one-two
• Line 18: “stall,” “securely” punch of those couplets drives the poem forward.
• Line 19: “more,” “made” Note, too, that the poem can be divided in half thematically:
• Line 20: “cooler” lines 1-12 focus on the beauty of spring, while lines 13-24
• Line 21: “Chloris” focus on the comparative coldness of the speaker's beloved.
• Line 24: “June,” “January”
METER
The poem is written in iambic pentameter: lines of five iambs,
VOCABULARY poetic feet that follow an unstressed-stressed
stressed rhythm
(da-DUM
DUM). Those pounding iambs echo a beating heart,
Hath (Line 1, Line 14) - Old-fashioned form of "has." evoking the way life surges forth in the spring. Here is line 1 as
Candies (Line 3) - The speaker is saying that the frost coats the an example:
grass in a way that makes it look covered in sugar syrup.

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Now that | the win
win- | ter's gone
gone, | the earth | hath lost warmth of spring blooming all around him, and he describes the
world in tender detail. This is clearly someone who appreciates
It's possible to scan that first foot as a trochee ("Now
Now that"), nature's splendor, yet all this vibrancy and joy ultimately throws
placing emphasis on the word "Now" and situating the poem his sorrow into starker relief. He seems to wish he could feel as
firmly in the spring—and, the speaker thinks, firmly at a time happy and carefree as lovers resting in the shade of a
when his beloved's heart should be softening toward him. "sycamore" tree. Instead, he's stuck lamenting that his
Many lines here start with trochees, in fact, such as line 3: beloved's heart remains frozen solid, stuck in a metaphorical
"January."
Can
Candies | the gr
grass
ass, | or casts | an i- | cy cream

Or line 12: SETTING

"The Spring" takes place, unsurprisingly, in the spring. It's May;
Wel
elcome | the com
com- | ing of | the long'
long'd
d- | for Ma
Mayy.
the winter has officially "gone," and the world has cast off its
coat of snow and frost. The "warm sun" beats down on the
These variations are minor, but in opening lines with a stressed
earth, softening the ground, melting away the ice, and
beat, they add some urgency and sonic interest to the poem,
beckoning creatures out of hibernation. Birds chirp like
preventing it from feeling too rigid or tightly wound.
"minstrels," or wandering musicians, celebrating the season.
Readers can hear the speaker's desperation in the final two Animals like the "ox" snooze in the "open fields" rather than in
lines of the poem, which play with the meter quite a bit: their stalls, and lovers lounge beneath a shady "sycamore" tree.
This world is idyllic, lush, and serene.
Time with | the sea
sea- | son; on
on- | ly she | doth car
carry
Everything responds to the warmth and tenderness of the
June in | her eyes
es, | in her heart | Jan
Janu- | ary.
season—everything, that is, except for the speaker's beloved.
While "all things smile," this woman just keeps scowling. She
The trochee at the top of line 23 calls attention to the
doesn't "keep / Time with the season," the delights of which
importance of time—the force that seems to guide "all things"
simply make her metaphorical coldness all the more
except for the heart of the speaker's beloved. There's also an
unbearable.
extra, dangling unstressed beat at the end of the line
(something called a "feminine ending"). The poem's final line is
then very metrically irregular, containing an anapest in its third CONTEXT
foot ("in her heart
heart") followed by two trochees in a row. As a
result, the poem concludes with a falling rather than rising LITERARY CONTEXT
rhythm; the poem seems to peter away, evoking the speaker's
Thomas Carew has long been associated with the "Cavalier
hopelessness. (Some may scan the final word as "JanJanuary,"
poets," a number of aristocratic, 17th-century English poets
without a stress on that "a," making the effect even more
who supported King Charles I during what is now called the
pronounced.)
English Civil War. The purported aim of Cavalier poetry was to
RHYME SCHEME lionize the king and his reign. In reality, however, most Cavalier
poetry only glancingly refers to politics or philosophy, instead
"The Spring" is arranged into 12 heroic couplets
couplets. As such, it also
focusing on beauty, sex, seizing the day, and personal
follows a very simple rh
rhyme
yme scheme
scheme: AABBCCDD... and so on.
valor—virtues and pleasures the Cavaliers associated with life
This tightly wound rhyme scheme fills the poem with quick, under a rightful monarchy.
steady music. It also subtly hints at the speaker's solitude: these
Carew didn't actually live to see the English Civil War (he died
are all rhymed pairs, meaning each sound has a partner. The
sometime around 1639-1640, and the war began in 1642). In
speaker, by contrast, does not; his beloved continues to reject
fact, though he is generally lumped in with the Cavaliers, his
him.
work actually served as a kind of bridge between earlier figures
of the English Renaissance, such as Ben Jonson and John
SPEAKER Donne
Donne, and the younger generation of poets who would come
to be known as the Cavaliers (including Richard LLo ovelace
elace,
The lovesick speaker of "The Spring" is pining away for a Robert Herrick
Herrick, and Sir John Suckling
Suckling). Carew is a transitional
woman who clearly has no interest in him (or, perhaps, her; the figure whose combination of technical skill, wit, and lighter,
poem never actually genders the speaker, and we've used male more carefree subjects helped to usher in the era of Cavalier
pronouns in this guide simply to reflect the vantage point of the poetry.
poem's 17th-century author). He notices the beauty and

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With its idyllic depiction of the world in spring and mention of was considered scandalous.
the figures "Amyntas" and "Chloris," "The Spring" can also be
considered a pastoral: a poem that celebrates a heavily
romanticized version of rural life. (The shepherd Amyntas and MORE RESOUR
RESOURCES
CES
his beloved Chloris also appear often in pastoral literature.)
Christopher Marlowe's "The The PPassionate
assionate Shepherd to His LLo
ove," EXTERNAL RESOURCES
in which a shepherd urges his lover to escape with him to the • Pastor
astoral
al P
Poetry
oetry 101 — Learn more about the idyllic world
countryside, is a classic example of the genre. The speaker of of pastoral poetry, the influence of which appears in this
Marlowe's poem, like the speaker of "The Spring," believes that poem's mentino of the shepherd Amyntas and his beloved
the alluring beauty of the countryside should, in theory, melt his Chloris. (https:/
([Link]
/[Link]/articles/
.[Link]/articles/
beloved's heart. poetry-101-what-is-a-pastor
poetry-101-what-is-a-pastoral-poem-learn-about-the-
al-poem-learn-about-the-
con
convventions-and-history-of-pastor
entions-and-history-of-pastoral-poems-with-
al-poems-with-
Carew's poems weren't officially published until after he died,
examples)
but his manuscripts were passed around and read by other
members of the court. In his lifetime, he was perhaps best • Thomas Carew's Life and WWork
ork — A biography of the poet
known for his erotic—and, at the time, deeply via the Poetry Foundation.
scandalous—poem "A Rapture," but he has since come to be (https:/
([Link]
/[Link]/poets/thomas-carew)
.[Link]/poets/thomas-carew)
known as one of the most complex and skilled poets of his time.
• A Reading of Carew's PPoem
oem — Listen to "The Spring" out
HISTORICAL CONTEXT loud. (https:/
([Link]
/www..[Link]/
watch?v=yjgNEDD
watch?v=yjgNEDDYB24)
YB24)
"The Spring" addresses timeless themes of unrequited love and
the beauty of the natural world, and it doesn't refer directly to • Who WWereere the Ca
Cavalier
valier P
Poets?
oets? — Read about the school of
political or historical events. Nonetheless, it was written in the poets with whom Carew is usually associated.
years leading up to the English Civil War, when Carew and his (https:/
([Link]
/[Link]/topic/Ca
.[Link]/topic/Cavalier-poets)
valier-poets)
fellow Cavalier poets were united by their strong support for
the English king—and, more broadly, for the monarchy itself.
They thought that God himself authorized the king's authority. HOW T
TO
O CITE
Most of them were also aristocrats: well-born men who served
at high levels in the British government as ambassadors, MLA
courtiers, and royal advisors. Carew himself was the son of a
Mottram, Darla. "The Spring." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 25 Jan
lawyer, and his mother was the daughter of the Lord Mayor of 2023. Web. 15 Feb 2023.
London.
"The Spring" also draws on archetypes of courtly love common CHICAGO MANUAL
in 17th-century literature. Relationships of this kind weren't Mottram, Darla. "The Spring." LitCharts LLC, January 25, 2023.
physical; in fact, the parties involved often had very little Retrieved February 15, 2023. [Link]
interaction with each other. Young noblemen would attempt to thomas-carew/the-spring.
flatter and woo ladies who were quite often of higher standing
than themselves. The Cavaliers, in particular, were also known
for being promiscuous at a time when sex outside of marriage

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