Analysis of The Curse Upon Edward

Thomas Gray 1716 (Cornhill, London) – 1771 (Cambridge)



WEAVE the warp, and weave the woof,
The winding-sheet of Edward's race.
 Give ample room, and verge enough
The characters of hell to trace.
Mark the year, and mark the night,
When Severn shall re-echo with affright
The shrieks of death, thro' Berkley's roofs that ring,
Shrieks of an agonizing King!
 She-wolf of France, with unrelenting fangs,
That tear'st the bowels of thy mangled mate,
 From thee be born, who o'er thy country hangs
The scourge of Heav'n. What terrors round him wait!
Amazement in his van, with Flight combined,
And Sorrow's faded form, and Solitude behind.

Mighty Victor, mighty Lord!
Low on his funeral couch he lies!
 No pitying heart, no eye, afford
A tear to grace his obsequies.
Is the sable warrior fled?
Thy son is gone. He rests among the dead.
The swarm that in thy noon tide beam were born?
Gone to salute the rising morn.
Fair laughs the morn, and soft the zephyr blows,
While proudly riding o'er the azure realm
In gallant trim the gilded vessel goes;
 Youth on the prow, and Pleasure at the helm;
Regardless of the sweeping whirlwind's sway,
That, hush'd in grim repose, expects his evening prey.

Fill high the sparkling bowl,
The rich repast prepare;
 Reft of a crown, he yet may share the feast:
Close by the regal chair
 Fell Thirst and Famine scowl
 A baleful smile upon their baffled guest.
Heard ye the din of battle bray,
 Lance to lance, and horse to horse?
 Long years of havoc urge their destined course,
And thro' the kindred squadrons mow their way.
 Ye Towers of Julius, London's lasting shame,
With many a foul and midnight murder fed,
 Revere his consort's faith, his father's fame,
And spare the meek usurper's holy head.
Above, below, the rose of snow,
 Twined with her blushing foe, we spread:
The bristled boar in infant-gore
 Wallows beneath the thorny shade.
Now, brothers, bending o'er th' accursed loom
Stamp we our vengeance deep, and ratify his doom.

Edward, lo! to sudden fate
(Weave we the woof. The thread is spun)
 Half of thy heart we consecrate.
(The web is wove. The work is done.)


Scheme XAXABBCCDEDEFF GXGAHHIIJKJKLL XMXMXXLNNLOHOHXHXXPP EQEQ
Poetic Form
Metre 1010101 01011101 11010101 01001111 1010101 110111011 011111111 11110001 111110101 11101011101 11111101101 0111110111 0100111101 0110101001 1010101 111100111 110011101 011111 10101001 1111110101 0110111101 11010101 1101010101 11010100101 0101010101 1101010101 010101011 110101011101 110101 01101 1101111101 110101 110101 0101011101 11011101 1110111 1111011101 0101010111 11011010101 1100101101 011111101 01011101 01010111 11010111 01010101 1010101 11010101111 111010101011 1011101 11010111 1111110 01110111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 2,008
Words 361
Sentences 27
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 14, 14, 20, 4
Lines Amount 52
Letters per line (avg) 30
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 395
Words per stanza (avg) 90
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:52 min read
66

Thomas Gray

Thomas Gray, C. more…

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