Analysis of How Sleep The Brave

William Taylor Collins 1721 (Sussex) – 1759 (Sussex)



How sleep the brave, who sink to rest
By all their country's wishes best!
When Spring, with dewy fingers cold,
Returns to deck their hallow'd mold,
She there shall dress a sweeter sod
Than Fancy's feet have ever trod.

By fairy hands their knell is rung;
By forms unseen their dirge is sung;
There Honor comes, a pilgrim grey,
To bless the turf that wraps their clay;
And Freedom shall awhile repair
To dwell, a weeping hermit, there!


Scheme AABBCC DDEEFF
Poetic Form
Metre 11011111 11110101 11110101 01111101 11110101 1111101 11011111 11011111 11010101 11011111 01010101 11010101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 422
Words 78
Sentences 3
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 6, 6
Lines Amount 12
Letters per line (avg) 28
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 170
Words per stanza (avg) 39
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 23, 2023

24 sec read
649

William Taylor Collins

William Collins was an English poet. Second in influence only to Thomas Gray, he was an important poet of the middle decades of the 18th century. more…

All William Taylor Collins poems | William Taylor Collins Books

0 fans

Discuss this William Taylor Collins poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "How Sleep The Brave" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 7 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/41722/how-sleep-the-brave>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    24
    days
    13
    hours
    12
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    What year was "Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral" originally published?
    A 1701
    B 1761
    C 1773
    D 1789