A Litany in Time of Plague

Nashe maintains a consistent rhythm of iambic trimeter throughout “A Litany in Time of Plague.” Each line in the poem consists of three pairs of unstressed and stressed syllables with an aabbccd rhyme scheme, and every stanza contains three sets of rhyming couplets and the repeated, concluding line “Lord, have mercy on us!” Aside from the enjambment found in lines 15 and 29, every line is end-stopped. Most of these stops are accomplished using a semicolon or period, with many of the poem’s points being expressed entirely in one line. For instance, while the opening lines “Adieu, farewell, earth’s bliss” (Line 1) and “This world uncertain is” (Line 2) complement and build on each other, both are still independent clauses that start and fully complete their thought.

Furthermore, nearly every rhyme is masculine, and Nashe uses relatively short and simple language throughout. With the exception of the multisyllabic words “wantonness” (Line 29), “bitterness” (Line 30), “executioner” (Line 31), “destiny” (Line 37), and “heritage” (Line 38), which all occur while the speaker is disregarding wit and art, every word in the poem is either one or two syllables. With its strict rhythm, masculine

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