Again has Time his annual circle run,

And April ushers in my natal day:

Since first my infant eyes beheld the sun,

How many a year has swiftly roll'd away!

Full half my thread of life the Fates have spun;

What various colours does the web display!

Some dark, some brighter; ere the work be done

The sadder hues will overshade the gay.

Yet not to Melancholy will I yield;

Against Despondency and Discontent

Still Fortitude and Hope shall keep the field;

Swerving from thee, O Virtue! I repent;

Now! to repel Temptation I am steel'd;

To follow thee I'm resolutely bent.



In a well-developed paragraph of at least five sentences, discuss how the poem's meaning is connected to the poet's choice of form.



Identify the poem as a sonnet or a villanelle.

Explain how the form, rhyme scheme, and other traits affect the poem's meaning.

Describe the tone of the poem and provide textual support.

Use academic language in your response.