Analysis of MacKrimmon's Lament
Sir Walter Scott 1771 (College Wynd, Edinburgh) – 1832 (Abbotsford, Roxburghshire)
MacLeod's wizard flag from the grey castle sallies,
The rowers are seated, unmoor'd are the galleys;
Gleam war-axe and broadsword, clang target and quiver,
As Mackrimmon sings, 'Farewell to Dunvegan for ever!
Farewell to each cliff, on which breakers are foaming;
Farewell, each dark glen, in which red-deer are roaming;
MacLeod may return, but Mackrimmon shall never!
'Farewell the bright clouds that on Quillan are sleeping;
Farewell the bright eyes in the Dun that are weeping;
To each minstrel delusion, farewell! - and for ever -
Mackrimmon departs, to return to you never!
The
Banshee's
wild voice sings the death-dirge before me,
The pall of the dead for a mantle hangs o'er me;
But my heart shall not flag, and my nerves shall not shiver,
Though devoted I go - to return again never!
'Too oft shall the notes of Mackrimmon's bewailing
Be heard when the Gael on their exile are sailing;
Dear land! to the shores whence unwilling we sever,
Return - return - return shall we never!
Cha till, cha till, cha till sin tuille!
Cha till, cha till, cha till sin tuille,
Cha till, cha till, cha till sin tuille,
Gea thillis MacLeod, cha till Mackrimmon!'
Scheme | aabbccb ccbbxaddbb ccbbEEEx |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 11011011010 0111011010 11101110010 111111110 11111110110 11110111110 0110111110 10111110110 10110011110 111001010110 1011011110 0 1 111011011 0110110101101 1111110111110 1010111010110 11101111 11101111110 111011010110 0101011110 11111111 11111111 11111111 1101111 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,138 |
Words | 202 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 10, 8 |
Lines Amount | 25 |
Letters per line (avg) | 36 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 299 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 66 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:01 min read
- 48 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"MacKrimmon's Lament" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/35512/mackrimmon%27s-lament>.
Discuss this Sir Walter Scott poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In