Analysis of Mercurial Messages in My Lines
Karl Constantine FOLKES 1935 (Portland)
Do not be flustered if you find
mercurial messages in my lines.
Born under sign of Gemini,
at cusp of water and of moon.
I am the betwixt and the between.
Hermetic sulphur quivering,
metaphysically simmering —
A trinity of Mercury.
Combined with salt to quake the mind.
The cosmic womb of Mercury,
in incubation shimmering.
Earth, air, fire and water the mix.
Alchemically a potent brew,
the Magnum Opus is the fix.
And from this mixture comes the stew,
with lines of poetry; some askew.
For you to ponder and resolve…
Solution left for you to solve.
With Prima Materia comes devotion.
Of salamander comes the potion.
The element as finest unction,
arising with such sweet expression.
From writer’s heart and his emotions,
distempers rule poetic function.
The brew of alchemy at work.
The recipe thereof assured;
uncommonly rare though it appears.
With potion to transform all life.
To rid it thus of any strife.
The serum it contains will cure,
whatever ails, whate’er the sore.
Such is the nature of my lines.
Designed, genetically at birth,
by fire, water, air and earth.
Elements that shape all life.
Yours, mine; and everything alive.
Sons and daughters of the stars,
we shine and glimmer near and far.
A mercurial poet thus anon;
from the rise and setting of the sun.
So drink of this my poetry.
Reflect on this, my oratory.
Consume it with much careful measure;
alchemically its lines to treasure.
Scheme | ABCX XDDE AEDF GFGG HHII CIXI XXXJ JXXB KKJX XXCI EELL |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (27%) |
Metre | 11110111 0100100011 1101110 11110011 110010001 110100 1100 01001100 01111101 01011100 0010100 111001001 01000101 01010101 01110101 111100101 11110001 01011111 11011010 10101010 01001101 010111010 110101010 1101010 01110011 0100101 10011101 11010111 11111101 01010111 101101 11010111 01010011 11010101 1001111 1101001 1010101 11010101 001001011 101010101 11111100 01111100 011111010 010011110 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,423 |
Words | 292 |
Sentences | 28 |
Stanzas | 11 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 44 |
Letters per line (avg) | 25 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 101 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 22 |
About this poem
Astrologically, I was born under the sign of Gemini (June 20). Like the element of quicksilver, I always seem to be dangling temperamentally between one state or another, immersed in an intellectual dilemma, pursuing yet another that is more challenging, moody like the ever changing moon, ever-flowing like a brook, a stream, or tributary of the sea, drawn to the ocean as its womb. Of such I am, of the betwixt and the between. Perchance from it, dear friends, I’ll never wean. more »
Written on November 13, 2021
Submitted by karlcfolkes on November 13, 2021
Modified by karlcfolkes on May 28, 2023
- 1:27 min read
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"Mercurial Messages in My Lines" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 5 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/113943/mercurial-messages-in-my-lines>.
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