How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #1
Come Sleep! O Sleep, the certain knot of peace,
The baiting place of wit, the balm of woe,
The poor man's wealth, the prisoner's release,
The indifferent judge between the high and low; (1-4)
The speaker reminds us twice in the first line alone that Sleep is a supernatural being and his only hope. The parade of metaphors in the ensuing lines (knot, baiting place, balm, wealth, release) only makes Sleep seem more magical or supernatural: he's real and he can also be all those things?
Quote #2
With shield of proof, shield me from out the prease
Of those fierce darts Despair at me doth throw; (5-6)
The speaker's supernatural poem becomes more and more supernatural. If before we just had Sleep, now we have Despair throwing darts, and we learn that Sleep can use a shield to protect the speaker. We admit, this sounds pretty cool—almost like a fantasy movie or something.
Quote #3
O make in me those civil wars to cease; (7)
This just gets better and better. "Civil wars" is totally a metaphor, but for a split second we imagine actual civil wars taking place inside the speaker. Hey, it's not that ridiculous when you consider that the speaker is talking to Sleep, right?
Quote #4
I will good tribute pay, if thou do so (8)
Sleep is now the equivalent of a supernatural mob-boss who the speaker pays for protection (in the form of sleep). Man, this is getting weirder and weirder.
Quote #5
And if these things, as being thine by right,
Move not thy heavy grace, thou shalt in me,
Livelier than elsewhere, Stella's image see. (12-14)
We get a double dose of wackiness in these lines. We get the whole bit about Sleep being able to do things for the speaker—he's got a "heavy grace" that can be moved—and we get a bit about an image living inside the speaker. This all sounds super-supernatural to us.