Analysis of Old Memory

William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)



O THOUGHT, fly to her when the end of day
Awakens an old memory, and say,
'Your strength, that is so lofty and fierce and kind,
It might call up a new age, calling to mind
The queens that were imagined long ago,
Is but half yours:  he kneaded in the dough
Through the long years of youth, and who would have thought
It all, and more than it all, would come to naught,
And that dear words meant nothing?'  But enough,
For when we have blamed the wind we can blame love;
Or, if there needs be more, be nothing said
That would be harsh for children that have strayed.


Scheme AABBCCDDEFGH
Poetic Form
Metre 1111010111 0101110001 11111100101 11110111011 0110010101 111111001 10111101111 11011111111 0111110101 11111011111 1111111101 1111110111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 561
Words 114
Sentences 3
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 12
Lines Amount 12
Letters per line (avg) 36
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 432
Words per stanza (avg) 113
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

33 sec read
86

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. more…

All William Butler Yeats poems | William Butler Yeats Books

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    What is the term for the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.
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