Analysis of Narcissus
Rainer Maria Rilke 1875 (Prague) – 1926 (Montreux)
Encircled by her arms as by a shell,
she hears her being murmur,
while forever he endures
the outrage of his too pure image...
Wistfully following their example,
nature re-enters herself;
contemplating its own sap, the flower
becomes too soft, and the boulder hardens...
It's the return of all desire that enters
toward all life embracing itself from afar...
Where does it fall? Under the dwindling
surface, does it hope to renew a center?
| Scheme | XAXX XXAX XXXA |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | |
| Metre | 0101011101 1101010 1010101 01111110 1001001010 1011001 100111010 0111001010 100111010110 011101001101 1111100100 10111101010 |
| Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
| Characters | 436 |
| Words | 76 |
| Sentences | 6 |
| Stanzas | 3 |
| Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4 |
| Lines Amount | 12 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 29 |
| Words per line (avg) | 6 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 115 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 25 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 01, 2023
- 23 sec read
- 713 Views
9 fans
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Narcissus" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/29696/narcissus>.
Powered by CITE.ME
Discuss this Rainer Maria Rilke poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In