Analysis of In The Evening

James Whitcomb Riley 1849 (Greenfield) – 1916 (Indianapolis)



In the evening of our days,
When the first far stars above
Glimmer dimmer, through the haze,
Than the dewy eyes of love,
Shall we mournfully revert
To the vanished morns and Mays
Of our youth, with hearts that hurt,--
In the evening of our days?

Shall the hand that holds your own
Till the twain are thrilled as now,
Be withheld, or colder grown?
Shall my kiss upon your brow
Falter from its high estate?
And, in all forgetful ways,
Shall we sit apart and wait--
In the evening of our days?

Nay, my wife--my life!--the gloom
Shall enfold us velvetwise,
And my smile shall be the groom
Of the gladness of your eyes:
Gently, gently as the dew
Mingles with the darkening maze,
I shall fall asleep with you--
In the evening of our days.


Scheme AbabcacA dedefafA gagxhahA
Poetic Form
Metre 00101101 1011101 1010101 1010111 11101 1010101 11011111 00101101 1011111 1011111 1011101 1110111 1011101 0010101 1110101 00101101 1111101 10111 0111101 101111 1010101 10101001 1110111 00101101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 723
Words 144
Sentences 7
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 24
Letters per line (avg) 24
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 188
Words per stanza (avg) 46
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 10, 2023

43 sec read
107

James Whitcomb Riley

James Whitcomb Riley was an American writer, poet, and best-selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the "Hoosier Poet" and "Children's Poet" for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively. more…

All James Whitcomb Riley poems | James Whitcomb Riley Books

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