Analysis of The Crossed Apple

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



I’ve come to give you fruit from out my orchard,
Of wide report.
I have trees there that bear me many apples.
Of every sort:

Clear, streaked; red and russet; green and golden;
Sour and sweet.
This apple’s from a tree yet unbeholden,
Where two kinds meet, -

So that this side is red without a dapple,
And this side’s hue
Is clear and snowy. It’s a lovely apple.
It is for you.

Within are five black pips as big as peas,
As you will find,
Potent to breed you five great apple trees
Of varying kind:

To breed you wood for fire, leaves for shade,
Apples for sauce.
Oh, this is a good apple for a maid,
It is a cross,

Fine on the finer, so the flesh is tight,
And grained like silk.
Sweet Burning gave the red side, and the white
Is Meadow Milk.

Eat it, and you will taste more than the fruit:
The blossom, too,
The sun, the air, the darkness at the root,
The rain, the dew,

The earth we came to, and the time we flee,
The fire and the breast.
I claim the white part, maiden, that’s for me.
You take the rest.


Scheme XAXA BCBC DEDE FGFG HIHI JKJK LELE DMXM
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 11111111110 1101 11111111010 11001 1110101010 1001 11010111 1111 1111110101 0111 11010101010 1111 0111111111 1111 1011111101 11001 1111110111 1011 1110110101 1101 1101010111 0111 1101011001 111 1101111101 0101 0101010101 0101 0111100111 010001 1101110111 1101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 992
Words 203
Sentences 13
Stanzas 8
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 24
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 94
Words per stanza (avg) 25
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 09, 2023

1:00 min read
124

Louise Bogan

Louise Bogan was an American poet. more…

All Louise Bogan poems | Louise Bogan Books

0 fans

Discuss this Louise Bogan poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Crossed Apple" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/26145/the-crossed-apple>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    13
    days
    3
    hours
    54
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    "I celebrate myself, and sing myself."
    A Countee Cullen
    B William Wordsworth
    C Walt Whitman
    D Billy Collins