Analysis of Last Post
William Ernest Henley 1849 (Gloucester) – 1903 (Woking)
THE day's high work is over and done,
And these no more will need the sun:
Blow, you bugles of England, blow!
These are gone where all must go,
Mightily gone from the field they won.
So in the workaday wear of battle,
Touched to glory with God's own red,
Bear we our chosen to their bed!
Settle them lovingly where they fell,
In that good lap they loved so well;
And, their deliveries to the dear Lord said,
And the last desperate volleys ranged and sped,
Blow, you bugles of England, blow,
Over the camps of her beaten foe --
Blow glory and pity to the victor Mother,
Sad, O sad in her sacrificial dead!
Labour, and love, and strife, and mirth,
They gave their part in this kindly earth --
Blow, you bugles of England, blow!
That her Name as a sun among stars might glow,
Till the dusk of time, with honour and worth:
That stung by lust and the pain of battle,
The One Race ever might starkly spread,
And the One Flag eagle it overhead!
In a rapture of wrath and faith and pride,
Thus they felt it, and thus they died;
So to the Maker of homes, to the Giver of bread,
For whose dear sake their triumphing souls they shed,
Blow, you bugles of England, blow,
Though you break the heart of her beaten foe,
Glory and praise to the everlasting Mother,
Glory and peace to her lovely and faithful dead!
Scheme | aaBbacddeeddBbfd ggBbgcddhhddBbfd |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 011111001 01111101 11101101 1111111 100110111 100101110 11101111 111010111 101100111 01111111 01010010111 0011010101 11101101 100110101 110010101010 111000101 1010101 111101101 11101101 10110101111 101111101 1111001110 011101101 0011101101 0010110101 11110111 1101011101011 111111111 11101101 1110110101 10011001010 100110100101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,273 |
Words | 250 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 16, 16 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 31 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 499 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 124 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:15 min read
- 100 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Last Post" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/40498/last-post>.
Discuss this William Ernest Henley 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