Analysis of The Alchemist

Louise Bogan 1897 (Livermore Falls) – 1970 (New York City)



I burned my life, that I might find
A passion wholly of the mind,
Thought divorced from eye and bone,
Ecstasy come to breath alone.
I broke my life, to seek relief
From the flawed light of love and grief.

With mounting beat the utter fire
Charred existence and desire.
It died low, ceased its sudden thresh.
I had found unmysterious flesh --
Not the mind's avid substance -- still
Passionate beyond the will.


Scheme AABBCC DDEEFF
Poetic Form
Metre 11111111 01010101 1011101 10011101 11111101 10111101 110101010 10100010 11111101 11111 10110101 1000101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 406
Words 76
Sentences 6
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 6, 6
Lines Amount 12
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 160
Words per stanza (avg) 37
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 20, 2023

23 sec read
367

Louise Bogan

Louise Bogan was an American poet. more…

All Louise Bogan poems | Louise Bogan Books

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