Analysis of A Test Of Love
James Whitcomb Riley 1849 (Greenfield) – 1916 (Indianapolis)
'Now who shall say he loves me not.'
He wooed her first in an atmosphere
Of tender and low-breathed sighs;
But the pang of her laugh went cutting clear
To the soul of the enterprise;
'You beg so pert for the kiss you seek
It reminds me, John,' she said,
'Of a poodle pet that jumps to 'speak'
For a crumb or a crust of bread.'
And flashing up, with the blush that flushed
His face like a tableau-light,
Came a bitter threat that his white lips hushed
To a chill, hoarse-voiced 'Good night!'
And again her laugh, like a knell that tolled,
And a wide-eyed mock surprise,--
'Why, John,' she said, 'you have taken cold
In the chill air of your sighs!'
And then he turned, and with teeth tight clenched,
He told her he hated her,--
That his love for her from his heart he wrenched
Like a corpse from a sepulcher.
And then she called him 'a ghoul all red
With the quintessence of crimes'--
'But I know you love me now,' she said,
And kissed him a hundred times.
Scheme | X ABABCDCD EFEFGBGB HXHADIDI |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11111111 11010110 1100111 1011011101 1011010 111110111 1011111 101011111 10110111 010110111 1110011 1010111111 1011111 0010110111 0011101 111111101 0011111 011101111 1101100 1111011111 101101 011110111 1001011 111111111 0110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 939 |
Words | 194 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 25 |
Letters per line (avg) | 29 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 180 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 46 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 56 sec read
- 89 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"A Test Of Love" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/20808/a-test-of-love>.
Discuss this James Whitcomb Riley 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