Analysis of In Tara's Halls

William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)



A MAN I praise that once in Tara's Hals
Said to the woman on his knees, 'Lie still.
My hundredth year is at an end.  I think
That something is about to happen, I think
That the adventure of old age begins.
To many women I have said, ''Lie still,''
And given everything a woman needs,
A roof, good clothes, passion, love perhaps,
But never asked for love; should I ask that,
I shall be old indeed.'
Thereon the man
Went to the Sacred House and stood between
The golden plough and harrow and spoke aloud
That all attendants and the casual crowd might hear.
'God I have loved, but should I ask return
Of God or woman, the time were come to die.'
He bade, his hundred and first year at end,
Diggers and carpenters make grave and coffin;
Saw that the grave was deep, the coffin sound,
Summoned the generations of his house,
Lay in the coffin, stopped his breath and died.


Scheme ABCCABAADEFGHIJKLMNAO
Poetic Form
Metre 0111110101 1101011111 1101111111 11010111011 1001011101 1101011111 010100101 011110101 1101111111 111101 0101 1101010101 01010100101 1101000100111 1111111101 11110010111 1111001111 10010011010 1101110101 100010111 1001011101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 854
Words 169
Sentences 8
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 21
Lines Amount 21
Letters per line (avg) 32
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 666
Words per stanza (avg) 165
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 11, 2023

50 sec read
93

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. more…

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