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Delight in Disorder
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Literary Devices
Form and Meter
“Delight in Disorder” is a lyric poem, concentrating on the speaker’s emotions regarding the observation of a woman whose attire is in a state of slight disarray. The poem is made up of 14 lines organized into seven sets of rhyming couplets, without stanza breaks. Each line is written in iambic tetrameter (except for Lines 2 and 8). Each line contains four iambs, made up of an unstressed syllable, followed by a stressed one.
The differing count of two of the lines hints at the value of slight imperfection, which is part of the theme. End rhyming also further enhances this concept, as Herrick’s speaker employs exact end rhyming in the first, third, fifth, and seventh couplets, juxtaposing them with near end rhyming in the second, fourth, and sixth couplets. For example, “note” (Line 9) rhymes exactly with “petticoat” (Line 10), but the previous couplet contains the off rhyme of “thereby” (Line 7) and “confusedly” (Line 8), while the following couplet rhymes “tie” (Line 11) with “civility” (Line 12). How off these rhymes would seem depends on the standard speech at the time, but if the pronunciation were similar to today, the off rhyming reinforces the contrasts and disarray celebrated in the poem’s content.
Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition is a technique where contrasting descriptions are put side-by-side to highlight a theme. Throughout “Delight in Disorder,” Herrick’s speaker uses contrasting descriptions between things that are contained or ordered and that are unencumbered or disordered. Most of the physical descriptions of the woman’s appearance use juxtaposition. The woman’s shoulders, by the nature of bone, are firm to support the clavicle, while the soft shawl is “thrown / Into a fine distraction” (Lines 3-4) around them. The stiffened fabric of the “crimson stomacher” (Line 6) is held in place by laces that are “err[ant]” (Line 5). A “cuff” (Line 7)—which is a rigid piece of fabric that ends a sleeve—is open and thus exposes ribbons that “flow confusedly” (Line 8). The “shoe-string” (Line 11) that holds the shoe on the foot is tied, but “careless[ly]” (Line 11). These descriptions draw attention to what is held together (ordered) and what is let loose (disordered), clearly emphasizing the theme of “wild civility” (Line 12). What is civil is considered order, while the word “wild” (Line 12) implies disorder. The poem continually relies on these juxtapositions to show the speaker’s compromise regarding the two states of being.
The Consonance of “S”
“Delight in Disorder” suggests that a secret observation is being made, told in a whisper. Nevertheless, there is no physical grounding shown of either party. The speaker does not explain where they are or the identity of the woman in question. The impression of secrecy is suggested by the many “s” sounds that appear in the poem, at the beginning, middle, and end of words. This usage is most prevalent in the beginning of the poem: “A sweet disorder in the dress / Kindles in clothes a wantonness; / A lawn about the shoulders thrown” (Lines 1-3). The sibilant nature of the “s” is suggestive of lowered speech, whispers, and sensual talk.
This also occurs later in the poem to lead to the speaker’s most important observation regarding the woman’s disarray:
A winning wave, deserving note,
In the tempestuous petticoat;
A careless shoe-string, in whose tie
I see a wild civility (Lines 9-12).
This “s” is increased at the pinnacle of desire, where the speaker brings themselves fully into the poem with the “I see” (Line 12) and offers the justification for why the woman is being observed. The heavy use of “s” in this passage shows how the observation-seduction correlation gains speed and prominence.
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By Robert Herrick
