A Fish Answers
James Henry Leigh Hunt 1784 (Southgate, London) – 1859
Amazing monster! that, for aught I know,
With the first sight of thee didst make our race
For ever stare! O flat and shocking face,
Grimly divided from the breast below!
Thou that on dry land horribly dost go
With a split body and most ridiculous pace,
Prong after prong, disgracer of all grace,
Long-useless-finned, haired, upright, unwet, slow!
O breather of unbreathable, sword-sharp air,
How canst exist? How bear thyself, thou dry
And dreary sloth? WHat particle canst share
Of the only blessed life, the watery?
I sometimes see of ye an actual pair
Go by! linked fin by fin! most odiously.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 03, 2023
- 31 sec read
- 83 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABBAABBA CXCXCX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 603 |
Words | 105 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 6 |
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"A Fish Answers" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/20102/a-fish-answers>.
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