Analysis of Ghosts
Edith Nesbit 1858 (Kennington, Surrey ) – 1924 (New Romney, Kent)
YES--kiss my forehead where the pain
Is grinding outwards from my brain!
But will not pity teach you, too,
To kiss these lips no fire burns through--
These cheeks, made colourless and thin
By years you had no portion in--
These weary eyes that wake and ache
Not for your sake--not for your sake:
Kiss, child, and let your kisses see
If they can find the heart in me!
There is a heart--or used to be!
I think the pain is growing less
Under your passionless caress--
Ah! could you teach my lips to crave
But just such kisses as you gave,
And could you, treading my life's ways,
But lay these ghosts of dear dead days
That walk my world by day and night,
And bar the way of all delight--
If at your touch should waken--.. . . Vain!
From heaven itself my soul would plain:
'Give me my ghosts, my ghosts again!'
Scheme | AABBCCDDEEE FFGGHHIIAAX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110101 11010111 11110111 111111011 111101 11111100 11011101 11111111 11011101 11110101 11011111 11011101 101101 11111111 11110111 01110111 11111111 11111101 01011101 11111101 110011111 11111101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 814 |
Words | 156 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 11, 11 |
Lines Amount | 22 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 306 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 78 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 46 sec read
- 53 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Ghosts" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/8830/ghosts>.
Discuss this Edith Nesbit 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