Analysis of The Miller's Daughter

Alfred Lord Tennyson 1809 – 1892



It is the miller's daughter,
    And she is grown so dear, so dear,
That I would be the jewel
    That trembles in her ear:
For hid in ringlets day and night,
I'd touch her neck so warm and white.

And I would be the girdle
    About her dainty dainty waist,
And her heart would beat against me,
    In sorrow and in rest:
And I should know if it beat right,
I'd clasp it round so close and tight.

And I would be the necklace,
    And all day long to fall and rise
Upon her balmy bosom,
    With her laughter or her sighs:
And I would lie so light, so light,
I scarce should be unclasp'd at night.


Scheme XXAXBB AXXXBB XCXCBB
Poetic Form
Metre 1101010 01111111 1111010 11001 1101101 11011101 0111010 01010101 00111011 010001 01111111 11111101 0111010 01111101 0101010 1010101 01111111 1111111
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 587
Words 119
Sentences 4
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6
Lines Amount 18
Letters per line (avg) 24
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 145
Words per stanza (avg) 39
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

36 sec read
123

Alfred Lord Tennyson

Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, FRS was Poet Laureate of Great Britain and Ireland during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular British poets.  more…

All Alfred Lord Tennyson poems | Alfred Lord Tennyson Books

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