Analysis of His Wife and Baby

Isabella Valancy Crawford 1850 (Dublin) – 1887 (Toronto)



In the lone place of the leaves,
Where they touch the hanging eaves,
There sprang a spray of joyous song that sounded sweet and sturdy;
    And the baby in the bed
    Raised the shining of his head,
And pulled the mother's lids apart to wake and watch the birdie.
    She kissed lip-dimples sweet,
    The red soles of his feet,
The waving palms that patted hers as wind-blown blossoms wander;
    He twined her tresses silk
    Round his neck as white as milk­
'Now, baby, say what birdie sings upon his green spray yonder.'

'He sings a plenty things­
    Just watch him wash his wings!
He says Papa will march to-day with drums home through the city.
    Here, birdie, here's my cup.
    You drink the milk all up;
I'll kiss you, birdie, now you're washed like baby clean and pretty.'

She rose, she sought the skies
    With the twin joys of her eyes;
She sent the strong dove of her soul up through the dawning's glory;
    She kissed upon her hand
    The glowing golden band
That bound the fine scroll of her life and clasped her simple story.


Scheme AABCCBDDEFFE GGBHHB IIBJJB
Poetic Form
Metre 0011101 1110101 110111011101010 0010001 1010111 010101011101010 111101 011111 010111001111010 110101 1111111 110111010111110 110101 111111 111011111111010 110111 110111 111101111101010 111101 1011101 11011101110110 110101 010101 110111010101010
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,060
Words 190
Sentences 8
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 12, 6, 6
Lines Amount 24
Letters per line (avg) 32
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 259
Words per stanza (avg) 62
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

57 sec read
102

Isabella Valancy Crawford

Isabella Valancy Crawford was an Irish-born Canadian writer and poet. more…

All Isabella Valancy Crawford poems | Isabella Valancy Crawford Books

0 fans

Discuss this Isabella Valancy Crawford poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "His Wife and Baby" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/19899/his-wife-and-baby>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    0
    days
    7
    hours
    29
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    "My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night."
    A Lord Byron
    B Sylvia Plath
    C Wilfred Owen
    D Edna St. Vincent Millay