Analysis of Life
Henry Van Dyke 1852 (Germantown, Pennsylvania) – 1933 (Princeton, New Jersey)
Let me but live my life from year to year,
With forward face and unreluctant soul;
Not hurrying to, nor turning from the goal;
Not mourning for the things that disappear
In the dim past, nor holding back in fear
From what the future veils; but with a whole
And happy heart, that pays its toll
To Youth and Age, and travels on with cheer.
So let the way wind up the hill or down,
O'er rough or smooth, the journey will be joy:
Still seeking what I sought when but a boy,
New friendship, high adventure, and a crown,
My heart will keep the courage of the quest,
And hope the road's last turn will be the best.
Scheme | ABBAABBA CDDCEE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Petrarchan sonnet |
Metre | 1111111111 1101011 11001110101 110101101 0011110101 1101011101 01011111 1101010111 1101110111 10111010111 1101111101 1101010001 1111010101 0101111101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 615 |
Words | 121 |
Sentences | 3 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 6 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 235 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 60 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 24, 2023
- 36 sec read
- 230 Views
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"Life" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/18342/life>.
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