Analysis of Modern Love XLII: I Am to Follow Her
George Meredith 1828 (Portsmouth, Hampshire) – 1909 (Box Hill, Surrey)
I am to follow her. There is much grace
In woman when thus bent on martyrdom.
They think that dignity of soul may come,
Perchance, with dignity of body. Base!
But I was taken by that air of cold
And statuesque sedateness, when she said
'I'm going'; lit a taper, bowed her head,
And went, as with the stride of Pallas bold.
Fleshly indifference horrible! The hands
Of Time now signal: O, she's safe from me!
Within those secret walls what do I see
Where first she set the taper down she stands:
Not Pallas: Hebe shamed! Thoughts black as death,
Like a stirred pool in sunshine break. Her wrists
I catch: she faltering, as she half resists,
'You love. . . ? love. . . ? love. . . ?' all on an in-drawn breath.
Scheme | ABBACDDCEFFEGHHG |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111001111 0101111100 1111001111 0111001101 1111011111 0011111 1101010101 0111011101 1010010001 1111011111 0111011111 1111010111 110111111 101101101 11110011101 1111111011 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 715 |
Words | 130 |
Sentences | 23 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 16 |
Lines Amount | 16 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 528 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 136 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 39 sec read
- 103 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Modern Love XLII: I Am to Follow Her" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/15521/modern-love-xlii%3A-i-am-to-follow-her>.
Discuss this George Meredith poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In