Analysis of Love was True to Me

John Boyle O'Reilly 1844 (Dowth) – 1890 (Boston)



LOVE was true to me,
True and tender;
I who ought to be
Love's defender,
Let the cold winds blow
Till they chilled him;
Let the winds and snow
Shroud him—and I know
That I killed him.

Years he cried to me
To be kinder;
I was blind to see
And grew blinder.
Years with soft hands raised
Fondly reaching,
Wept and prayed and praised,
Still beseeching.

When he died I woke,
God! how lonely,
When the gray dawn broke
On one only.
Now beside Love's grave
I am kneeling;
All he sought and gave
I am feeling.


Scheme ABABCDCCD ABABEFEF GAGAHFHF
Poetic Form Tetractys  (52%)
Metre 11111 1010 11111 1010 10111 1111 10101 11011 1111 11111 1110 11111 0110 11111 1010 10101 1010 11111 1110 10111 1110 10111 1110 11101 1110
Closest metre Iambic dimeter
Characters 495
Words 100
Sentences 7
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 9, 8, 8
Lines Amount 25
Letters per line (avg) 15
Words per line (avg) 4
Letters per stanza (avg) 128
Words per stanza (avg) 33
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

30 sec read
104

John Boyle O'Reilly

John Boyle O'Reilly was an Irish-born poet, journalist and fiction writer. more…

All John Boyle O'Reilly poems | John Boyle O'Reilly Books

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