Analysis of The Falling Stars
Charles Mackay 1814 (Perth) – 1889 (London)
SHEPHERD, thou say'st there is a star
Which rules our changeful destinies:
Can mortal vision soar so far,
Or pierce such mighty mysteries?
Shepherd, 'tis said thy mind recals
The lore of grey departed seers:
say, what is yonder star which falls,
Which falls, falls, and disappears?
My son, a child of joy expired,
Yon was his star which glided by,
The friendly feast, by mirth inspired,
Has witnessed his departing sigh;
He sang of wine and beauty's thralls,
Round went his jokes and witty jeers
There is another star which falls.
Which falls, falls, and disappears!
My son, it is a star of light,
Of one beloved, and young and fair,
Preparing for her bridal night,
Wreathing white roses in her hair;
On her her frantic lover calls,
But vain his grief, and vain his tears
There is another star which falls.
Which falls, falls, and disappears!
My son, yon was the rapid star,
The suddenly extinguished gleam,
Of one just born to wealth and power,
One born to bask in fortune's beam;
He has escaped the flatterers' thralls,
The weight of guilt, the load of years
There is another star which falls,
Which falls, falls, and disappears!
My son, did'st see its guileful ray?
A monarch's favourite is no more!
Flattered in life-in death's dark day
No friends or mourners seek his door:
He was the cringing slave who crawls,
And fattens on a people's tears
There is another star which falls,
Which falls, falls, and disappears!
'Twas the last of a race of kings;
But go, my son-for thou hast seen
That wealth and power are empty things,
Which leave no trace that they have been.
Glory and fame the heart enthral,
And grandeur courts the people's cheer;
All these are only stars which fall,
Which fall, fall, and disappear.
Scheme | ababbcdE xfxfbcDE ghghdiDE ajxjbeDE klkldiDE mxmxnono |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 101111101 11101100 11010111 11110100 1011111 01110101 11110111 111001 11011101 11111101 010111010 11010101 1111011 11110101 11010111 111001 11110111 11010101 01010101 1110001 10010101 11110111 11010111 111001 11110101 01000101 111111010 11110101 1101011 01110111 11010111 111001 11111111 011111 10010111 11110111 11010111 0110101 11010111 111001 10110111 11111111 110101101 11111111 10010101 00110101 11110111 111001 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,713 |
Words | 305 |
Sentences | 13 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 48 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 223 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 51 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 1:33 min read
- 105 Views
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