Thomas Gray has written a poem that compares with other poems on prodigious levels of related attribute, with a few differences. The structure of “Elegy Indited in a Country Churchyard” is consistent with the four verse stanzas of other poetry encountered throughout this semester. Gray uses a seamless theme of time in his poem, as well as in Shakespeare's sonnets and Donne's "The Ecstasy." Gray's conception of imagery differs radically from that of other poets. To begin with, structure is the first thing to detect when comparing Gray's "Elegy" to other poems. Gray indites in heroic quatrains, four stanzas in verse with iambic pentameter. Iambic pentameter is the designation given to a verse composed of five iambics. Iambs being an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. His poems are similar to the structures of Shakespeare's sonnets, usually divided into three quatrains followed by a couplet. Gray's poem follows an ABAB rhythmic pattern; Shakespeare's model is classically ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. “Astrophil and Stella” by Sir Philip Sidney follows the iambic structure of ABBA ABBA CDCD EE. John Donne says in four stanzas of iambic tetrameter rhyming ABBA CDDC. Quatrain in iambic tetrameter, the rhymes are found in the second and fourth lines and often in the first and third. Time is a theme quite often used in poetry. Whether it's the time of day, the time of year, or the year itself, time is a central theme used throughout poetry. Donne uses the theme of time in his poem “Ecstasy” by verbally expressing that time is circumscribed. “Thus must the immaculate souls of the adepts descend / to the affections and faculties, / Which senses can reach and apprehend, / Otherwise a great prince lies in captivity. » Here, Don...... middle of paper ......o souls. “He – though he knew not which soul spoke, / Because both indicated, both spoke alike – / Could a nascent concoction take, / And a far purer part than it has not come” (24-28). Here, Donne relates that two souls now express themselves as one; they can take a concoction and leave this place feeling better than when they arrived. “Astophil and Stella,” Sidney uses the moon to describe a barely amorous tone. While these guys talk about love, Gray uses his imagery to tell readers not to make fun of the dominant man. The eighth stanza reads: “Let not zeal mock their usable labor, / their family joys and their obscure destiny; / Nor does Greatness discern auricularly with a disdainful smile / The short and simple annuals of the poor. Here, Gray embodies zeal and greatness. Both words are capitalized in his elegy, thus reinforcing his personification of both.