Analysis of Sonnet 05

Robert Southey 1774 (Bristol) – 1843 (London)



Hard by the road, where on that little mound
 The high grass rustles to the passing breeze,
 The child of Misery rests her head in peace.
Pause there in sadness. That unhallowed ground
Inshrines what once was Isabel. Sleep on
 Sleep on, poor Outcast! lovely was thy cheek,
 And thy mild eye was eloquent to speak
The soul of Pity. Pale and woe-begone
Soon did thy fair cheek fade, and thine eye weep
 The tear of anguish for the babe unborn,
 The helpless heir of Poverty and Scorn.
She drank the draught that chill'd her soul to sleep.
I pause and wipe the big drop from mine eye,
Whilst the proud Levite scowls and passes by.


Scheme ABCADEEDFGGFHH
Poetic Form
Metre 1101111101 011110101 01110010101 11010111 11111011 111110111 0111110011 011101011 1111110111 0111010111 0101110001 1101110111 1101011111 101110101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 622
Words 118
Sentences 9
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 35
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 489
Words per stanza (avg) 116
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

35 sec read
57

Robert Southey

Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843. more…

All Robert Southey poems | Robert Southey Books

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