On My First Son - Literary Devices

On My First Son
by way of Ben Johnson

Farewell, thou infant of my proper hand, and pleasure;
My sin changed into too much desire of thee, lov’d boy.
Seven years tho’ wert lent to me, and I thee pay,
Exacted by using thy fate, on the just day.
O, should I lose all father now! For why
Will man lament the country he ought to envy?
To have so soon ‘scap’d world’s and flesh’s rage,
And if no other misery, but age?
Rest in gentle peace’, and, ask’d, say, “Here doth lie
Ben Jonson his nice piece of poetry.”
For whose sake henceforth all his vows be such,
As what he loves may never like an excessive amount of.

Summary of On my First Son
Popularity of “On my First Son”: This poem become written with the aid of Ben Johnson, a amazing English poet. ‘On my First Son’ is a tragic short poem just like a eulogy to his son after his brief-lived existence. It turned into first posted in 1616. The poem displays the grief and love of the speaker, who changed into seven years vintage on the time of passing. It additionally illustrates how the speaker justifies the dying of his son.
“On my First Son” As a Representative of Death: This poem is a reflection of father’s pain and deep love for his son. The poem starts offevolved whilst the speaker bids farewell to his seven years old son whom he considers his proper hand and a actual joy. He says that his handiest sin is that he hopes too much for his deceased son that he would develop up and would do splendid things in his life. To him, seven years again, his birth introduced happiness and joy for the circle of relatives however now he gave his son again to God. He believes that God loaned his son for seven years before taking him again.
Upon losing his son, the word ‘father’ does not please him anymore. As the poem continues, the speaker puts a question mark on his mourning. He believes that he ought to no longer mourn for his son’s loss of life due to the fact he has gone to a better place. He has escaped from the sufferings and miseries of the world. Although the speaker consoles himself with this thought, but he confesses that he will in no way love absolutely everyone like he cherished his son.
Major Themes in “On my First Son”: Love, death, and loss are the principal topics underlined on this poem. The poem centers round a father’s grief who has misplaced his young son. To him, his son turned into his supply of happiness. He delivered a package of joys in his lifestyles, however hours of pleasures are too short. The poet laments the early loss of life of his son. He additionally thinks death has liberated him from the worldly woes. It is thru this piece the speaker conveys the idea that loss of life is inevitable and one ought to revel in existence while there is still lifestyles.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “On my First Son”
Literary gadgets are very essential factors used to bring richness to the texts. They also make readers apprehend the hidden meanings and subject matters. Ben Johnson has also made this poem terrific through the use of figurative language. Here is the evaluation of a few literary gadgets used on this poem.

Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the equal line including the sound of /i / in “baby of my proper hand” and the sound of /oo/ in “O, ought to I lose all father now! For why.”
Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the identical line in short succession including the sound of /s/ in “To have so soon ‘scap’d world’s and flesh’s rage.”
Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the equal line such as the sound of /s/ in “For whose sake henceforth all his vows be such”.”
Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their 5 senses. For example, “Farewell, thou child of my proper hand, and pleasure”, “Seven years tho’ wert lent to me, and I thee pay” and “To have so soon ‘scap’d world’s and flesh’s rage.”
Rhetorical Question: Rhetorical query is a query no longer requested to receive an answer; it's miles simply posed to make the factor clear. For example, “Will guy lament the nation he should envy?” and “And if no other misery, but age?”
Symbolism: Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify thoughts and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings exceptional from literal meanings. Here, “piece of poetry” symbolizes his finest accomplishment and “right hand” symbolizes the speaker’s strength.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “On my First Son”
Poetic and literary gadgets are the same, however some are used handiest in poetry. Here is the evaluation of a number of the poetic gadgets used on this poem.

Couplet: There are constructive traces of verse in a couplet, generally in the identical meter and joined by rhyme. This poem ends with a couplet, which usually well-knownshows the central concept of the poem. For example,
“For whose sake henceforth all his vows be such,
As what he loves may in no way like an excessive amount of.”

End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. For example, “such/much”, “joy/boy” and “pay/day.”
Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows the ABAB rhyme scheme and this sample continues till the end.
Quotes to be Used
The lines stated under are beneficial for a lover to express his unbound love for a family member or a friend.

“For whose sake henceforth all his vows be such,
As what he loves may in no way like an excessive amount of.”