SOAPSTone Sample
On His Being Arrived to the Age of
Twenty Three
(by John Milton)
Sample Poem: “On His Being Arrived at the Age of 23”
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HOW soon hath time, the subtle thief of youth,
Stolen on his wing my three and twentieth year!
My hasting days fly on with full career,
But my late spring no bud or blossom sheweth.
•
Perhaps my semblance might deceive the truth,
That I to manhood am arrived so near,
And inward ripeness doth much less appear
That some more timely happy spirits indueth.
•
Yet be it less or more, or soon or slow,
It shall be still in strictest measure even
To that same lot however mean or high,
•
Toward which time leads me and the will of Heaven.
All is, if I have grace to use it so,
As ever in my great Taskmaster's eye.
First, read the poem and define
any unfamiliar words.
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•
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Hath- has
Subtle- not obvious
Hasting- quick
Sheweth- shows
Semblance- resemble
Doth- does
Indueth- endure, survive
Now consider the SOAPSTone
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S is for Speaker
O is for Occasion
A is for Audience
P is for Purpose
S is for Subject
Tone is the mood of the poem
S
Speaker: Is someone identified
as the speaker? What
assumptions can you make
about the speaker? (e.g., age,
gender, class, emotional state,
etc.)
S
(Speaker)
• The speaker of the poem is a young man
on his birthday (line 3 “my”).
• The speaker does consider himself to be
old looking (line 6 “so near”), but he thinks
the inside doesn’t match the outside.
• The speaker is religious (L 14 “great Taskmaster”).
O
Occasion: What is the
rhetorical occasion of the
poem? Is it a memory, a
description, an observation, a
valedictory, an argument, a
diatribe, an elegy, a declaration,
a critique, etc.?
O
(Occasion)
• The occasion is the 23rd birthday or close to it.
He might be thinking about it approaching.
• John Milton wrote a long time ago (he died in
1674). What was the life expectancy? What was
the age of 23 equal to? (life expectancy was 35)
• The occasion of his birthday is causing the
speaker to think about his life (“perhaps”, “yet”)
A
Audience: Does the speaker
identify an audience? What
assumptions can you
make about the intended
audience? Is the speaker clearly
addressing one person or the
world?
A
(Audience)
• I think the speaker is talking or thinking to
himself. If he is taking stock of his life he
might be thinking about what he has or
hasn’t done.
• God might be part of the audience (last
line), so maybe he is praying. He sure
wants God to know he has been
considered.
P
Purpose: What is the speaker's
purpose? In what ways does the
poet convey this message? What is
the message? How does the
speaker try to spark a reaction in
the audience? How is the poem
supposed to make the audience
feel? What is its intended effect?
P
(Purpose)
• If the man is taking stock of his life at this
turning point, he might be thinking about
what he has left to do.
I think that in line 4 he might be thinking
about the children (“no bud or blossom
shew’th) he doesn’t have. This might be
akin to a 55 year old man today looking
back on his life.
S
Subject: What is the subject of the
piece? How do you know this? How
does the poet present his/her
subject? Does (s)he present it
immediately or does (s)he delay its
revelation?
S
Subject
• Growing old, looking back, having regret, but
having hope.
• I think he is frightened of the years flying by (line
3 “my hasting days fly on”).
• He feels that he may look like a man on the
outside (L 5 “my semblance might deceive the
truth”, but he still feels like a kid inside “inward
ripeness doth much less appear”).
Tone
Tone: What is the author's
attitude toward the subject?
What emotional sense
do you take from the piece?
How does the diction point to
tone?
Tone
• In the first 8 lines the speaker seems a little sad
about growing old because he never had kids
and regrets it. He seems sad that his days are
flying by, and lonely.
• But the tone of the second six lines show that he
realizes that there isn’t much he can do about
his situation. By the end of the poem he accepts
the amount of time he has left ( L 9 “be it less or
more, or soon or slow”). His resignation is made
easier knowing that his God is watching and
judging him (last line “eye”).
Other Things to Consider:
Stylistic and Linguistic Elements:
syntax, language, literary devices,
imagery, diction, detail. Use of accented
language, metaphors, similes, alliteration,
capitalization within the lines, repetition,
etc.
Also Consider:
Narrative Style: How does the poet tell
the "story" of the poem? What does
the poet reveal? What does he/she
conceal? What does (s)he invert/subvert?
Is the poem "dramatic," almost play-like in
its use of dialogue or theatrical
conventions like the soliloquy? How does
the poet treat time?
Think About:
Evidence: What kind of diction dominates
the poem? What is the source of the
images (for example: nature, weapons,
law, science, theology, love, architecture,
etc.). What do sound devices contribute to
the poem? What was going on politically
when the poem was written? (You will
have to research the poem’s publishing
date…)
Consider This Too
“Written language,
especially poetry, is
inherently a flawed
translation of lived life.”
-Mark Yakich
By using the SOAPSTone
process you should get more
depth of understanding.
Your next step in the research paper is to
find reliable, credible research that agrees
with your SOAPSTone findings, as well as
biographical and historical information on
the author and time period…