Analysis of The Promise of Sleep

Amy Levy 1861 (London) – 1889 (London)



Put the sweet thoughts from out thy mind,
The dreams from out thy breast;
No joy for thee--but thou shalt find
Thy rest

All day I could not work for woe,
I could not work nor rest;
The trouble drove me to and fro,
Like a leaf on the storm's breast.

Night came and saw my sorrow cease;
Sleep in the chamber stole;
Peace crept about my limbs, and peace
Fell on my stormy soul.

And now I think of only this,--
How I again may woo
The gentle sleep-- who promises
That death is gentle too.


Scheme ABAB CBCB DEDE XFXF
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 10111111 011111 11111111 11 11111111 111111 01011101 1011011 11011101 100101 11011101 111101 01111101 110111 01011100 111101
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 477
Words 100
Sentences 4
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 23
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 92
Words per stanza (avg) 24
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

30 sec read
350

Amy Levy

Amy Levy was a British essayist, poet, and novelist best remembered for her feminist positions and her homosexual romances during the Victorian era. more…

All Amy Levy poems | Amy Levy Books

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