Analysis of Garibaldi

John Greenleaf Whittier 1807 (Haverhill) – 1892 (Hampton Falls)



In trance and dream of old, God's prophet saw
The casting down of thrones. Thou, watching lone
The hot Sardinian coast-line, hazy-hilled,
Where, fringing round Caprera's rocky zone
With foam, the slow waves gather and withdraw,
Behold'st the vision of the seer fulfilled,
And hear'st the sea-winds burdened with a sound
Of falling chains, as, one by one, unbound,
The nations lift their right hands up and swear
Their oath of freedom. From the chalk-white wall
Of England, from the black Carpathian range,
Along the Danube and the Theiss, through all
The passes of the Spanish Pyrenees,
And from the Seine's thronged banks, a murmur strange
And glad floats to thee o'er thy summer seas
On the salt wind that stirs thy whitening hair,--
The song of freedom's bloodless victories!
Rejoice, O Garibaldi! Though thy sword
Failed at Rome's gates, and blood seemed vainly poured
Where, in Christ's name, the crowned infidel
Of France wrought murder with the arms of hell
On that sad mountain slope whose ghostly dead,
Unmindful of the gray exorcist's ban,
Walk, unappeased, the chambered Vatican,
And draw the curtains of Napoleon's bed!
God's providence is not blind, but, full of eyes,
It searches all the refuges of lies;
And in His time and way, the accursed things
Before whose evil feet thy battle-gage
Has clashed defiance from hot youth to age
Shall perish. All men shall be priests and kings,
One royal brotherhood, one church made free
By love, which is the law of liberty


Scheme ABCBACCCDEFEGFGDGCCHHCIJCKKLMMLNC
Poetic Form
Metre 0101111101 0101111101 01111101 1111101 1101110001 01101010101 01101110101 1101111101 0101111101 1111010111 11010111 0101000111 0101010100 0101110101 01111101101 10111111001 0111010100 011010111 1111011101 10110110 1111010111 1111011101 110111 11010100 01010101001 11001111111 1101010011 001101011 0111011101 1101011111 1101111101 110101111 1111011100
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,452
Words 253
Sentences 7
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 33
Lines Amount 33
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 1,167
Words per stanza (avg) 250
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:19 min read
71

John Greenleaf Whittier

John Greenleaf Whittier was an influential American Quaker poet and ardent advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States. more…

All John Greenleaf Whittier poems | John Greenleaf Whittier Books

5 fans

Discuss this John Greenleaf Whittier poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Garibaldi" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/22904/garibaldi>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    1
    day
    19
    hours
    40
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    What are the first eight lines of a sonnet called?
    A octane
    B octave
    C octet
    D octopus