Analysis of Madman's Song

Elinor Morton Wylie 1885 (Somerville, New Jersey) – 1928 (New York City, New York)



Better to see your cheek grown hollow,
Better to see your temple worn,
Than to forget to follow, follow,
After the sound of a silver horn.

Better to bind your brow with willow
And follow, follow until you die,
Than to sleep with your head on a golden pillow,
Nor lift it up when the hunt goes by.

Better to see your cheek grow sallow
And your hair grown gray, so soon, so soon,
Than to forget to hallo, hallo,
After the milk-white hounds of the moon.


Scheme ABAB ACAC ADAD
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 101111110 10111101 110111010 100110101 10111111 010100111 111111101010 111110111 10111111 011111111 1101111 100111101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 456
Words 89
Sentences 4
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 12
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 116
Words per stanza (avg) 29
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 22, 2023

26 sec read
152

Elinor Morton Wylie

Elinor Morton Wylie was an American poet and novelist popular in the 1920s and 1930s. "She was famous during her life almost as much for her ethereal beauty and personality as for her melodious, sensuous poetry." more…

All Elinor Morton Wylie poems | Elinor Morton Wylie Books

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    Lewis Carroll wrote: "You are old father William, the young man said..."
    A "and you seem to have lost your sight"
    B "and your eyes have become less bright"
    C "and your hair has become very white"
    D "and you're going to die tonight"