Analysis of The Mountain And The Lake
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
I know a mountain thrilling to the stars,
Peerless and pure, and pinnacled with snow;
Glimpsing the golden dawn o'er coral bars,
Flaunting the vanisht sunset's garnet glow;
Proudly patrician, passionless, serene;
Soaring in silvered steeps where cloud-surfs break;
Virgin and vestal -- Oh, a very Queen!
And at her feet there dreams a quiet lake.
My lake adores my mountain -- well I know,
For I have watched it from its dawn-dream start,
Stilling its mirror to her splendid snow,
Framing her image in its trembling heart;
Glassing her graciousness of greening wood,
Kissing her throne, melodiously mad,
Thrilling responsive to her every mood,
Gloomed with her sadness, gay when she is glad.
My lake has dreamed and loved since time was born;
Will love and dream till time shall cease to be;
Gazing to Her in worship half forlorn,
Who looks towards the stars and will not see --
My peerless mountain, splendid in her scorn. . . .
Alas! poor little lake! Alas! poor me!
Scheme | ABABCDCD BEBEXFXF GHGHGH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101010101 10010111 1010110101 10011101 10010101 100111111 1001010101 0101110101 1101110111 1111111111 111010101 10010011001 101001101 100111 10010101001 1101011111 1111011111 1101111111 1010010101 1101010111 1101010001 0111010111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 955 |
Words | 167 |
Sentences | 12 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 6 |
Lines Amount | 22 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 252 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 56 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 18, 2023
- 50 sec read
- 113 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Mountain And The Lake" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32596/the-mountain-and-the-lake>.
Discuss this Robert William Service 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