Analysis of Tomb (Of Verlaine)

Stéphane Mallarmé 1842 (Paris) – 1898 (Vulaines-sur-Seine)



Anniversary – January 1897

The black rock enraged that the north wind rolls it on
Will not stop itself, nor, under pious hands, still
Cease testing its resemblance to human ill
As if to bless some fatal cast of bronze.

Here nearly always if the ring-dove coos
This immaterial grief with many a fold of cloud
Crushes the ripe star of tomorrows, whose crowd
Will be silvered by its scintillations. Who

Following the solitary leap
External now of our vagabond – seeks
Verlaine? He’s hidden in the grass, Verlaine

Only to catch, naïvely, not drying it with his breath
And without the lip drinking there, at peace again,
A shallow stream that’s slandered, and named Death.


Scheme X ABBX XCCX XXA DXD
Poetic Form Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 0100100 011011011111 111011101011 11010101101 1111110111 110110111 1010011100111 1001110111 1111111 10001001 01011101001 11100011 1011111101111 001011011101 0101110011
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 672
Words 118
Sentences 5
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 1, 4, 4, 3, 3
Lines Amount 15
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 106
Words per stanza (avg) 23
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 21, 2023

35 sec read
45

Stéphane Mallarmé

Stéphane Mallarmé, whose real name was Étienne Mallarmé, was a French poet and critic. more…

All Stéphane Mallarmé poems | Stéphane Mallarmé Books

0 fans

Discuss this Stéphane Mallarmé poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Tomb (Of Verlaine)" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 17 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/43495/tomb-%28of-verlaine%29>.

    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!

    More poems by

    Stéphane Mallarmé

    »

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    14
    days
    5
    hours
    1
    minute

    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?

    »
    Who wrote the poem "The Waste Land"?
    A T.S. Eliot
    B Ezra Pound
    C W.H. Auden
    D Sylvia Plath