The British poet George Herbert first published "The Collar" in his famous 1633 collection of devotional verse, The Temple. In this autobiographical poem, a clergyman rages against all the limitations of religious life, longing for freedom and pleasure rather than duty and endless, guilt-ridden self-scrutiny. But no matter how much he struggles, he just can't get around two facts: God exists, and he has a calling to serve his "Lord." Religious faith, this poem suggests, can feel more like a burden than a consolation—but that doesn't mean one can run from it.
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The Full Text of “The Collar”
1I struck the board, and cried, "No more;
2 I will abroad!
3What? shall I ever sigh and pine?
4My lines and life are free, free as the road,
5Loose as the wind, as large as store.
6 Shall I be still in suit?
7Have I no harvest but a thorn
8To let me blood, and not restore
9What I have lost with cordial fruit?
10 Sure there was wine
11Before my sighs did dry it; there was corn
12 Before my tears did drown it.
13 Is the year only lost to me?
14 Have I no bays to crown it,
15No flowers, no garlands gay? All blasted?
16 All wasted?
17Not so, my heart; but there is fruit,
18 And thou hast hands.
19Recover all thy sigh-blown age
20On double pleasures: leave thy cold dispute
21Of what is fit and not. Forsake thy cage,
22 Thy rope of sands,
23Which petty thoughts have made, and made to thee
24Good cable, to enforce and draw,
25 And be thy law,
26While thou didst wink and wouldst not see.
27 Away! take heed;
28 I will abroad.
29Call in thy death's-head there; tie up thy fears;
30 He that forbears
31 To suit and serve his need
32 Deserves his load."
33But as I raved and grew more fierce and wild
34 At every word,
35Methought I heard one calling, Child!
36 And I replied My Lord.
The Full Text of “The Collar”
1I struck the board, and cried, "No more;
2 I will abroad!
3What? shall I ever sigh and pine?
4My lines and life are free, free as the road,
5Loose as the wind, as large as store.
6 Shall I be still in suit?
7Have I no harvest but a thorn
8To let me blood, and not restore
9What I have lost with cordial fruit?
10 Sure there was wine
11Before my sighs did dry it; there was corn
12 Before my tears did drown it.
13 Is the year only lost to me?
14 Have I no bays to crown it,
15No flowers, no garlands gay? All blasted?
16 All wasted?
17Not so, my heart; but there is fruit,
18 And thou hast hands.
19Recover all thy sigh-blown age
20On double pleasures: leave thy cold dispute
21Of what is fit and not. Forsake thy cage,
22 Thy rope of sands,
23Which petty thoughts have made, and made to thee
24Good cable, to enforce and draw,
25 And be thy law,
26While thou didst wink and wouldst not see.
27 Away! take heed;
28 I will abroad.
29Call in thy death's-head there; tie up thy fears;
30 He that forbears
31 To suit and serve his need
32 Deserves his load."
33But as I raved and grew more fierce and wild
34 At every word,
35Methought I heard one calling, Child!
36 And I replied My Lord.
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“The Collar” Summary
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“The Collar” Themes
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The Weight of Faith
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “The Collar”
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Lines 1-5
I struck the board, and cried, "No more;
I will abroad!
What? shall I ever sigh and pine?
My lines and life are free, free as the road,
Loose as the wind, as large as store. -
Lines 6-9
Shall I be still in suit?
Have I no harvest but a thorn
To let me blood, and not restore
What I have lost with cordial fruit? -
Lines 10-12
Sure there was wine
Before my sighs did dry it; there was corn
Before my tears did drown it. -
Lines 13-16
Is the year only lost to me?
Have I no bays to crown it,
No flowers, no garlands gay? All blasted?
All wasted? -
Lines 17-21
Not so, my heart; but there is fruit,
And thou hast hands.
Recover all thy sigh-blown age
On double pleasures: leave thy cold dispute
Of what is fit and not. -
Lines 21-26
Forsake thy cage,
Thy rope of sands,
Which petty thoughts have made, and made to thee
Good cable, to enforce and draw,
And be thy law,
While thou didst wink and wouldst not see. -
Lines 27-32
Away! take heed;
I will abroad.
Call in thy death's-head there; tie up thy fears;
He that forbears
To suit and serve his need
Deserves his load." -
Lines 33-36
But as I raved and grew more fierce and wild
At every word,
Methought I heard one calling,
Child!
And I replied
My Lord.
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“The Collar” Symbols
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Packing up the "Death's-Head"
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Plants, Fruits, and Flowers
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“The Collar” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Conceit
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Pun
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Metaphor
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Simile
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Allusion
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Rhetorical Question
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Parallelism
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Repetition
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Enjambment
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Assonance
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Alliteration
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“The Collar” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Board
- I will abroad
- Pine
- My lines and life
- As large as store
- In suit
- Cordial
- Sure
- Corn
- Bays
- Garlands gay
- Blasted
- Thou
- Thy
- Sigh-blown
- Cold dispute
- What is fit and not
- Forsake
- Rope of sands
- Cable
- Enforce and draw
- While thou didst wink and wouldst not see
- Death's-head
- Forbears
- Raved
- Methought
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- See where this vocabulary word appears in the poem.
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “The Collar”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“The Collar” Speaker
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“The Collar” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “The Collar”
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More “The Collar” Resources
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External Resources
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Herbert in Bemerton — Visit a website dedicated to Herbert and the church where he lived and worked.
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The Temple — Learn more about The Temple, Herbert's famous posthumous poetry collection.
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Herbert's Legacy — Read author Wendy Cope on Herbert's lasting importance.
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A Short Biography — Visit the Poetry Foundation to learn more about Herbert's life.
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The Poem Aloud — Listen to Prof. Iain McGilchrist performing the poem.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by George Herbert
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