Analysis of A Song Of Delight

Alice Guerin Crist 1876 (Clare Castle) – 1941 (Toowoomba)



Oh! Have you stolen out, one summer morning
To pick white crocus ‘neath the garden wall,
Or shaken softly the big scented roses
And watched the dew-drops fall?

Or slipt beneath the rail fence, grey with lichen,
And found the little brown path to the creek
In the deep hush of morn when all was silent
And soft airs fanned your cheek?

And caught he subtle scent of earth and mosses,
Of tender water-violets blue and white,
Or heard a little brown bird thrill with rapture,
Deep-hidden out of sight.

Or have you tracked a ‘coachman’s whip’ at noon-day
Through spicy scrub with tropic orchids gay,
Following its mocking ‘whish-h’ with eager footsteps
Until it dies away?

Oh have you caught the breath of glowing summer,
Rich with ripe passion-fruit and blackberry wine? –
Gone berry-hunting by the river reaches,
Where dancing waters shine?

Or have you seem the deep scrub-aisles by moonlight,
Where scented jasmine gleamed amid the shade,
Where moonrays lit great banks of white rock-lilies –
And listened unafraid.

To the soft stir of unseen life about you?
Give thanks to God, then, for your heart is right,
The treasure-house of Nature yours forever-
Her realms of pure delight.


Scheme XAXA XBXB CDED FFXF EGCG DHXH XDED
Poetic Form Quatrain  (86%)
Metre 11110111010 1111010101 11010011010 010111 11010111110 0101011101 00111111110 011111 01110111010 11010100101 11010111110 110111 1111011111 1101110101 100110111101 011101 11110111010 1111010101 11010101010 110101 1111011111 1101010101 1111111110 01001 10111011011 1111111111 01011101010 011101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,176
Words 204
Sentences 11
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 33
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 133
Words per stanza (avg) 29
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:01 min read
43

Alice Guerin Crist

Alice Guerin Crist was an Australian poet, author and journalist. more…

All Alice Guerin Crist poems | Alice Guerin Crist Books

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