Analysis of The Sniper
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
Because back home in Tennessee
I was a champeen shot,
They made a sniper outa me
An' ninety krouts I got:
I wish to Christ I'd not!
Athinkin' o' them blasted lives
It's kindo' blue I be;
Them lads no doubt had kids an' wives
An' happy home like me:
Them stiffs I still can see.
Aye, ninety men or more my hand
Has hustled down to hell;
They've loaded me with medals and
They tell me I done well:
A hero for a spell.
But Heaven help me to forget
Them fellow men I've slain,
The bubbling flow of blood I've let . . .
I'll never kill again:
To swat flies gives me pain.
Just let me dream when we will see
And end of soldierin';
When flags of famous victory
Will be amoulderin':
An' lethal steel an' battle blast
Be nightmares of the past.
Scheme | ABABB XAXAA XCXCC DEDXE AEAEFF |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 0111001 11011 1101011 110111 111111 111101 11111 11111111 110111 111111 11011111 110111 11011100 111111 010101 11011101 110111 010011111 110101 111111 11111111 0111 11110100 111 11011101 11101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 894 |
Words | 146 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 5, 5, 5, 6 |
Lines Amount | 26 |
Letters per line (avg) | 21 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 111 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 29 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 45 sec read
- 128 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Sniper" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32648/the-sniper>.
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