“Epitaph on Elizabeth, L.H.” by Ben Jonson

Question

Wouldst thou hear what man can say
In a little? Reader, stay.
Underneath this stone doth lie
As much beauty as could die;
Which in life did harbour give 5
To more virtue than doth live.
If at all she had a fault,
Leave it buried in this vault.
One name was Elizabeth,
Th' other let it sleep with death: 10
Fitter, where it died to tell,
Than that it liv'd at all. Farewell.

Which statement best describes the syntax of lines 3–4?

A.
They contain parallel structures.

B.
They use repetition to set the rhythm.

C.
They defy conventional rules of capitalization.

D.
They deviate from the subject-verb-object order.

E.
They include anaphora and end-stopped punctuation.

To what end does Jonson use syntax in lines 3–4?

“Underneath this stone doth lie / As much beauty as could die;”

A.
to maintain his rhyme scheme

B.
to encourage the reader to pause

C.
to reinforce the sequence of events

D.
to draw attention through dissonance

E.
to emphasize the anonymity of the subject

Answer 1

Answer:

A. They contain parallel structures.

The syntax in lines 3-4 contains parallel structures, with the verb "doth lie" followed by the noun phrase "As much beauty as could die." This creates an effective and memorable parallelism, which is a common poetic technique.

As for the second question, it is difficult to say for certain, but it seems that Jonson uses syntax in lines 3-4 primarily to maintain his rhyme scheme, rather than to achieve any specific effect. The use of "doth lie" in line 3 also emphasizes the finality of the subject's death.