Analysis of Genius
Victor Marie Hugo 1802 (Besançon) – 1885 (Paris)
Woe unto him! the child of this sad earth,
Who, in a troubled world, unjust and blind,
Bears Genius--treasure of celestial birth,
Within his solitary soul enshrined.
Woe unto him! for Envy's pangs impure,
Like the undying vultures', will be driven
Into his noble heart, that must endure
Pangs for each triumph; and, still unforgiven,
Suffer Prometheus' doom, who ravished fire from Heaven.
Still though his destiny on earth may be
Grief and injustice; who would not endure
With joyful calm, each proffered agony;
Could he the prize of Genius thus ensure?
What mortal feeling kindled in his soul
That clear celestial flame, so pure and high,
O'er which nor time nor death can have control,
Would in inglorious pleasures basely fly
From sufferings whose reward is Immortality?
No! though the clamors of the envious crowd
Pursue the son of Genius, he will rise
From the dull clod, borne by an effort proud
Beyond the reach of vulgar enmities.
'Tis thus the eagle, with his pinions spread,
Reposing o'er the tempest, from that height
Sees the clouds reel and roll above our head,
While he, rejoicing in his tranquil flight,
More upward soars sublime in heaven's eternal light.
Scheme | ABABCDCDD ECECFGFGEHX HXIJIJJ |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101011111 1001010101 1101010101 011100101 110111101 10010101110 0111011101 1111001010 10111110110 1111001111 1001011101 1101110100 1101110101 1101010011 1101011101 10111111101 1001001011 110010110100 1101101001 0101110111 1011111101 0101110100 110101111 110010111 10110101101 1101001101 1101010100101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,154 |
Words | 200 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 9, 11, 7 |
Lines Amount | 27 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 310 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 66 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:01 min read
- 94 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Genius" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/37727/genius>.
Discuss this Victor Marie Hugo 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