Analysis of At Algeciras - A Meditaton Upon Death
William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)
The heron-billed pale cattle-birds
That feed on some foul parasite
Of the Moroccan flocks and herds
Cross the narrow Straits to light
In the rich midnight of the garden trees
Till the dawn break upon those mingled seas.
Often at evening when a boy
Would I carry to a friend -
Hoping more substantial joy
Did an older mind commend -
Not such as are in Newton's metaphor,
But actual shells of Rosses' level shore.
Greater glory in the Sun,
An evening chill upon the air,
Bid imagination run
Much on the Great Questioner;
What He can question, what if questioned I
Can with a fitting confidence reply.
Scheme | ABABCC DEDEFF GXGXHH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 01011101 1111110 10010101 1010111 001110101 1011011101 10110101 1110101 1010101 1110101 1111010100 1100111101 1010001 11010101 100101 1101100 1111011101 1101010001 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 589 |
Words | 110 |
Sentences | 4 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 6, 6 |
Lines Amount | 18 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 159 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 36 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 30, 2023
- 33 sec read
- 110 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"At Algeciras - A Meditaton Upon Death" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/39290/at-algeciras---a-meditaton-upon-death>.
Discuss this William Butler Yeats 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