I that have been a lover
-- Speaker (chapter 1)

Importance: In this line, the speaker boldly introduces his own identity. He is, he says, "a lover" – someone identified and defined by their admiration for something else. The word also implies, but does not necessarily signify, a romantic passion. Thus, this quote also introduces the motif of romance that is subtly interwoven throughout the poem.

Though not in these, in rithmes not wholly dumb
-- Speaker (chapter 2)

Importance: In this line, Jonson begins to play with double meaning, a technique that he uses throughout the poem. This sentence could be read in one of two ways: that these lines are "wholly dumb", while some of his other poems are only somewhat dumb – a dual insult to himself – or that his other poems may be somewhat dumb, but these lines are not dumb at all (2). This is an example of how Jonson implies a degree of self-praise within his work...