Affliction (I) (Herbert poem) Summary

The first three stanzas of "Affliction (I)" are taken up by the speaker’s joyful early experience serving God. At first, life feels like a never-ending springtime. He is so elated that he feels even the stars are his. But stanzas 4-9 mark a sharp contrast. They are full of graphic descriptions of the speaker’s mental pain and physical sickness. As he tries to come to terms with suffering, the speaker accuses God of getting in the way of his life plans. He accuses God of tricking him into service, as if God is a boss and the speaker signed an unfair work contract. The speaker talks about how even in his sickness, when he was ready to rebel, God dissolved his rage with just the right words to make him put up with the pain. Then when he learned how to put up with discomfort silently, God gave him even more sickness. In stanzas 10 and 11, the speaker tries to move toward a sense of closure. He wants to submit himself to whatever God decides for him. He wants to put up with whatever kind of pain he is given. His only goal is to be useful to others. Yet despite signs of spiritual development, even by the end of the poem the speaker still expresses doubts about his ability to love God the way he wants to. Whether or not the speaker has truly spiritually matured is left ambiguous when the poem ends.