Analysis of The Call

Rupert Brooke 1887 (Rugby) – 1915 (Aegean Sea)



Out of the nothingness of sleep,
The slow dreams of Eternity,
There was a thunder on the deep:
I came, because you called to me.

I broke the Night's primeval bars,
I dared the old abysmal curse,
And flashed through ranks of frightened stars
Suddenly on the universe!

The eternal silences were broken;
Hell became Heaven as I passed. --
What shall I give you as a token,
A sign that we have met, at last?

I'll break and forge the stars anew,
Shatter the heavens with a song;
Immortal in my love for you,
Because I love you, very strong.

Your mouth shall mock the old and wise,
Your laugh shall fill the world with flame,
I'll write upon the shrinking skies
The scarlet splendour of your name,

Till Heaven cracks, and Hell thereunder
Dies in her ultimate mad fire,
And darkness falls, with scornful thunder,
On dreams of men and men's desire.

Then only in the empty spaces,
Death, walking very silently,
Shall fear the glory of our faces
Through all the dark infinity.

So, clothed about with perfect love,
The eternal end shall find us one,
Alone above the Night, above
The dust of the dead gods, alone.


Scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ KKKK LBLB MEMX
Poetic Form Quatrain  (88%)
Metre 11010011 01110100 11010101 11011111 11010101 11010101 01111101 1001010 0010100010 10110111 111111010 01111111 11010101 10010101 01001111 01111101 11110101 11110111 11010101 0101111 1101011 100100110 010111010 111101010 110001010 11010100 1101011010 11010100 11011011 001011111 01010101 01101101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,078
Words 203
Sentences 9
Stanzas 8
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 107
Words per stanza (avg) 25
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

1:02 min read
102

Rupert Brooke

Rupert Chawner Brooke was an English poet known for his idealistic war sonnets written during the First World War, especially "The Soldier". more…

All Rupert Brooke poems | Rupert Brooke Books

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