Analysis of A Grey Mood
Ella Wheeler Wilcox 1855 (Janesville) – 1919
As we hurry away to the end, my friend,
Of this sad little farce called existence,
We are sure that the future will bring one thing,
And that is the grave in the distance.
And so when our lives run along all wrong,
And nothing seems real or certain,
We can comfort ourselves with the thought (or not)
Of that spectre behind the curtain.
But we haven’t much time to repine or whine,
Or to wound or jostle each other;
And the hour for us each is to-day, I say,
If we mean to assist a brother.
And there is no pleasure that earth gives birth,
But the worry it brings is double;
And all that repays for the strife of life,
Is helping some soul in trouble.
I tell you, if I could go back the track
To my life’s morning hour,
I would not set forth, seeking name or fame,
Or that poor bauble called power.
I would be like the sunlight, and live to give;
I would lend, but I would not borrow;
Nor would I be blind and complain of pain,
Forgetting the meaning of sorrow.
This world is a vaporous jest at best,
Tossed off by the gods in laughter;
And a cruel attempt at wit were it
If nothing better came after.
It is reeking with hearts that ache and break,
Which we ought to comfort and strengthen,
As we hurry away to the end, my friend,
And the shadows behind us lengthen.
Scheme | Abxbxcxc xdxdxexe xdxdxfxf xdxdxcAc |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11100110111 1111011010 11110101111 011010010 01110110111 01011110 111000110111 111001010 111111111 111110110 001011111111 111101010 0111101111 101011110 011110111 11011010 1111111101 1111010 1111110111 11110110 1111010111 11111111 1111100111 010010110 11101111 11101010 0010011101 11010110 1110111101 111110010 11100110111 00101110 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,285 |
Words | 251 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 31 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 244 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 62 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 25, 2023
- 1:15 min read
- 87 Views
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