Analysis of Doubting Heart



WHERE are the swallows fled?  
   Frozen and dead,  
Perchance, upon some bleak and stormy shore.  
   O doubting heart!  
 Far over purple seas  
 They wait, in sunny ease,  
 The balmy southern breeze,  
To bring them to their northern homes once more.  

Why must the flowers die?  
   Prison’d they lie
In the cold tomb, heedless of tears or rain.  
   O doubting heart!  
 They only sleep below  
 The soft white ermine snow,  
 While winter winds shall blow,
To breathe and smile upon you soon again.  

The sun has hid its rays  
   These many days;  
Will dreary hours never leave the earth?  
   O doubting heart!
 The stormy clouds on high  
 Veil the same sunny sky,  
 That soon (for spring is nigh)  
Shall wake the summer into golden mirth.  

Fair hope is dead, and light
   Is quench’d in night.  
What sound can break the silence of despair?  
   O doubting heart!  
 Thy sky is overcast,  
 Yet stars shall rise at last,
 Brighter for darkness past,  
And angels’ silver voices stir the air.


Scheme aabCdddb eexCfffx gghCeeeh iijCkkkj
Poetic Form
Metre 110101 1001 0101110101 1101 110101 110101 010101 1111110111 110101 111 001111111 1101 110101 011101 110111 1101011101 011111 1101 1101010101 1101 010111 101101 111111 1101001101 111101 1101 1111010101 1101 11110 111111 101101 0101010101
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 993
Words 168
Sentences 16
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 22
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 180
Words per stanza (avg) 42
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

50 sec read
69

Adelaide Anne Procter

Adelaide Anne Procter was an English poet and philanthropist. more…

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