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Poetry · Chapter

Sleep Now, O Sleep Now explained

A voice calls for the unquiet heart to sleep, as winter's cry at the door shifts from urging sleep to denying it.

What happens

A voice calls for the unquiet heart to sleep, as winter's cry at the door shifts from urging sleep to denying it. A kiss promises peace and quiet, urging the heart to rest.

Themes in this chapter

  • Mortality and Sleep

    The entire poem centers on sleep as a metaphor for death, with winter's cry and a kiss promising eternal peace.

  • Nature and Mood

    Winter's voice at the door sets a somber, cold mood that mirrors the heart's unrest and the call to sleep.

Characters to notice

  • Narrator

    The speaker whose heart is addressed and who offers a kiss for peace.

  • Love

    Implied as the source of the voice crying 'Sleep now' and the kiss that brings peace.

  • Death

    Associated with winter's cry and the final sleep invoked in the poem.

Key passages

  • “Sleep now, O sleep now, O you unquiet heart!”

    Rest now, restless heart, and find peace.

    Opening command to the troubled heart to find rest.

  • “The voice of the winter Is heard at the door. O sleep, for the winter Is crying 'Sleep no more.'”

    Winter's voice at the door first urges sleep, then declares that sleep is over.

    Winter's contradictory cry signals the end of rest and the approach of death.

  • “My kiss will give peace now And quiet to your heart— Sleep on in peace now, O you unquiet heart!”

    My kiss will bring you peace and stillness, so rest peacefully now, troubled heart.

    A kiss offers final comfort and eternal sleep to the restless heart.

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Poetry — Sleep Now, O Sleep Now Explained