I Know I Have Been Happiest
Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)
I know I have been happiest at your side;
But what is done, is done, and all's to be.
And small the good, to linger dolefully-
Gayly it lived, and gallantly it died.
I will not make you songs of hearts denied,
And you, being man, would have no tears of me,
And should I offer you fidelity,
You'd be, I think, a little terrified.
Yet this the need of woman, this her curse:
To range her little gifts, and give, and give,
Because the throb of giving's sweet to bear.
To you, who never begged me vows or verse,
My gift shall be my absence, while I live;
But after that, my dear, I cannot swear.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 29, 2023
- 36 sec read
- 171 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABXAABBA CXDCXD |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 586 |
Words | 119 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 6 |
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"I Know I Have Been Happiest" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/8167/i-know-i-have-been-happiest>.
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