Analysis of A Prayer in Darkness

Gilbert Keith Chesterton 1874 (Kensington, London) – 1936 (Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire)



This much, O heaven—if I should brood or rave,   
 Pity me not; but let the world be fed,   
 Yea, in my madness if I strike me dead,   
Heed you the grass that grows upon my grave.   

If I dare snarl between this sun and sod,
 Whimper and clamour, give me grace to own,   
 In sun and rain and fruit in season shown,   
The shining silence of the scorn of God.   

Thank God the stars are set beyond my power,   
 If I must travail in a night of wrath,   
 Thank God my tears will never vex a moth,   
Nor any curse of mine cut down a flower.   

Men say the sun was darkened: yet I had   
 Thought it beat brightly, even on—Calvary:   
 And He that hung upon the Torturing Tree     
Heard all the crickets singing, and was glad.


Scheme ABBA CDDC EXXE FGGF
Poetic Form Quatrain  (75%)
Metre 11110111111 1011110111 1011011111 1101110111 1111011101 100111111 0101010101 0101010111 11011101110 1110100111 1111110101 11011111010 1101110111 11110101100 01110101001 1101010011
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 732
Words 139
Sentences 5
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 32
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 129
Words per stanza (avg) 34
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

41 sec read
61

Gilbert Keith Chesterton

Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an influential English writer of the early 20th century His diverse output included journalism philosophy poetry biography Christian apologetics fantasy and detective fiction Gilbert Keith Chesterton KC*SG was an English writer, philosopher, lay theologian, and literary and art critic. He has been referred to as the "prince of paradox". Time magazine observed of his writing style: "Whenever possible Chesterton made his points with popular sayings, proverbs, allegories—first carefully turning them inside out." more…

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