Analysis of The Distant Ship
Felicia Dorothea Hemans 1793 (Liverpool, Lancashire) – 1835 (Dublin, County Dublin)
The sea-bird's wing, o'er ocean's breast
Shoots like a glancing star,
While the red radiance of the west
Spreads kindling fast and far;
And yet that splendour wins thee not,–
Thy still and thoughtful eye
Dwells but on one dark distant spot
Of all the main and sky.
Look round thee!–o'er the slumbering deep
A solemn glory broods;
A fire hath touch'd the beacon-steep,
And all the golden woods;
A thousand gorgeous clouds on high
Burn with the amber light!–
What spell, from that rich pageantry,
Chains down thy gazing sight?
A softening thought of human cares,
A feeling link'd to earth!
Is not yon speck a bark, which bears
The lov'd of many a hearth?
Oh! do not Hope, and Grief, and Fear,
Crowd her frail world even now,
And manhood's prayer and woman's tear,
Follow her venturous prow?
Bright are the floating clouds above,
The glittering seas below;
But we are bound by cords of love
To kindred weal and wo.
Therefore, amidst this wide array
Of glorious things and fair,
My soul is on that bark's lone way,–
For human hearts are there.
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEF DGXG FXFXXHIH JKJK LILI |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 011110101 110101 101100101 110101 0111111 110101 11111101 110101 1111001001 010101 010110101 010101 01010111 110101 11111100 111101 010011101 010111 11110111 0111001 11110101 1011101 0110101 10011 11010101 0100101 11111111 110101 1011101 1100101 11111111 110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,048 |
Words | 192 |
Sentences | 11 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 4, 4, 8, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 25 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 135 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 31 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:00 min read
- 33 Views
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"The Distant Ship" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/13568/the-distant-ship>.
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