Analysis of Tick-Tock
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
Tick-tocking in my ear
My dollar clock I hear.
'Arise,' it seems to say:
'Behold another day
To grasp the golden key
Of Opportunity;
To turn the magic lock--
Tick-tock!
'Another day to gain
Some goal you sought in vain;
to sing a sweeter song,
Perchance to right a wrong;
To win a height unscaled
Where yesterday you failed;
To brave a battle shock--
Tick-tock!'
You measure out my breath,
Each beat one nearer death . . .
O God, grant unto me
A few more years to be,
That somehow I may prove
My loyalty and love:
Wind up this worn-out clock,
Tick-tock,
Tick-tock!
Scheme | aabbccdD eeffggdD hhccxxdDD |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (24%) |
Metre | 11011 110111 011111 010101 110101 10100 110101 11 010111 111101 110101 011101 11011 11011 110101 11 110111 111101 111101 011111 11111 110001 111111 11 11 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 608 |
Words | 106 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 9 |
Lines Amount | 25 |
Letters per line (avg) | 17 |
Words per line (avg) | 4 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 142 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 35 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 31 sec read
- 45 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Tick-Tock" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32699/tick-tock>.
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