Analysis of Felix Randal

Gerard Manley Hopkins 1844 (Stratford, London) – 1889 (Dublin)



F{'e}lix R{'a}ndal the f{'a}rrier, O is he d{'e}ad then? my d{'u}ty all
{'e}nded,
   Who have watched his mould of man, bigboned and hardy-handsome
   Pining, pining, till time when reason rambled in it, and some
 Fatal four disorders, fleshed there, all contended?
 Sickness broke him. Impatient, he cursed at first, but mended
   Being anointed |&| all; tho' a heavenlier heart began some
   M{'o}nths {'e}arlier, since {'I} had our sw{'e}et repr{'i}eve |&|
r{'a}nsom
 T{'e}ndered to him. {'A}h well, God r{'e}st him {'a}ll road {'e}ver he
off{'e}nded!

This s{'e}eing the s{'i}ck end{'e}ars them t{'o} us, us t{'o}o it
end{'e}ars.
 My tongue had taught thee comfort, touch had quenched thy tears,
   Thy tears that touched my heart, child, Felix, poor Felix Randal;
 How far from then forethought of, all thy more boisterous years,
 When thou at the random grim forge, powerful amidst peers
   Didst fettle for the great grey drayhorse his bright |&| battering
sandal!


Scheme XABBAABXBXA ACCDCCXD
Poetic Form
Metre 1111110111111111111111 11 1111111101010 101011110100101 101010111010 10110101111110 1001011011011 11111111101111011 111 1111111111111111111 111 11110111111111111111 111 111111011111 11111111011010 1111111111001 11101011100011 111011111100 10
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 961
Words 153
Sentences 8
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 11, 8
Lines Amount 19
Letters per line (avg) 36
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 342
Words per stanza (avg) 76
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

53 sec read
157

Gerard Manley Hopkins

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