Analysis of An Old Memory
Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906
How sweet the music sounded
That summer long ago,
When you were by my side, love,
To list its gentle flow.
I saw your eyes a-shining,
I felt your rippling hair,
I kissed your pearly cheek, love,
And had no thought of care.
And gay or sad the music,
With subtle charm replete;
I found in after years, love
'Twas you that made it sweet.
For standing where we heard it,
I hear again the strain;
It wakes my heart, but thrills it
With sad, mysterious pain.
It pulses not so joyous
As when you stood with me,
And hand in hand we listened
To that low melody.
Oh, could the years turn back, love!
Oh, could events be changed
To what they were that time, love,
Before we were estranged;
Wert thou once more a maiden
Whose smile was gold to me;
Were I once more the lover
Whose word was life to thee,--
O God! could all be altered,
The pain, the grief, the strife,
And wert thou--as thou shouldst be--
My true and loyal wife!
But all my tears are idle,
And all my wishes vain.
What once you were to me, love,
You may not be again.
For I, alas! like others,
Have missed my dearest aim.
I asked for love. Oh, mockery!
Fate comes to me with fame!
Scheme | XABA XCBC XDBD EFEF XGXG BHBH XGXG XIGI XFBX XJGJ |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (90%) Etheree (30%) |
Metre | 1101010 110101 1101111 111101 1111010 1111001 1111011 011111 0111010 110101 1101011 111111 1101111 110101 1111111 1101001 1101110 111111 0101110 111100 1101111 110111 1110111 011001 1111010 111111 0111010 111111 1111110 010101 0111111 110101 1111110 011101 1110111 111101 1101110 111101 11111100 111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 1,103 |
Words | 226 |
Sentences | 16 |
Stanzas | 10 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 40 |
Letters per line (avg) | 21 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 86 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 22 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:07 min read
- 118 Views
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"An Old Memory" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28655/an-old-memory>.
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