Analysis of The Reeds of Runnymede
Rudyard Kipling 1865 (Mumbai) – 1936 (London)
Magna Charta, June 15, 1215
At Runnymede, At Runnymede,
What say the reeds at Runnymede?
The lissom reeds that give and take,
That bend so far, but never break,
They keep the sleepy Thames awake
With tales of John at Runnymede.
At Runnymede, at Runnymede,
Oh, hear the reeds at Runnymede:--
"You mustn't sell, delay, deny,
A freeman's right or liberty.
It makes the stubborn Englishry,
We saw 'em roused at Runnymede!
"When through our ranks the Barons came,
With little thought of praise or blame,
But resolute to pay a game,
They lumbered up to Runnymede;
And there they launched in solid time
The first attack on Right Divine--
The curt, uncompromising 'Sign!'
That settled John at Runnymede.
"At Runnymede, at Runnymede,
Your rights were won at Runnymede!
No freeman shall be fined or bound,
Or dispossessed or freehold ground,
Except by lawful judgment found
And passed upon him by his peers.
Forget not, after all these years,
The Charter Signed at Runnymede."
And still when Mob or Monarch lays
Too rude hand on English ways,
The whisper wakes, the shudder plays,
Across the reeds at Runnymede.
And Tames, that knows the moods of kings,
And crowds and priests and suchlike things,
Rolls deep and dreadful as he brings
Their warning down from Runnymede!
Scheme | x Aabbba Aaxaxa cccaxdda Aaaaaeea fffaggga |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1011 1111 110111 0111101 11111101 11010101 111111 1111 110111 11010101 01011100 110101 111111 111010101 11011111 1101101 11111 01110101 01011101 01010001 110111 1111 110111 11011111 101111 01110101 01011111 01110111 010111 0111111 1111101 01010101 010111 01110111 0101011 11010111 110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,233 |
Words | 220 |
Sentences | 12 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 6, 6, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 37 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 165 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 36 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:06 min read
- 146 Views
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"The Reeds of Runnymede" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/33540/the-reeds-of-runnymede>.
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