Analysis of The Wistful Days

Robert Underwood Johnson 1853 ( Washington, D.C) – 1937 ( New York)



What is there wanting in the Spring?
The air is soft as yesteryear;
The happy-nested green is here,
And half the world is on the wing.
The morning beckons, and like balm
Are westward waters blue and calm.
Yet something’s wanting in the Spring.

What is it wanting in the Spring?
O April, lover to us all,
What is so poignant in thy thrall
When children’s merry voices ring?
What haunts us in the cooing dove
More subtle than the speech of Love,
What nameless lack or loss of Spring?

Let Youth go dally with the Spring,
Call her the dear, the fair, the young;
And all her graces ever sung
Let him, once more rehearsing, sing.
They know, who keep a broken tryst,
Till something from the Spring be missed
We have not truly known the Spring.


Scheme AXXABBA ACCADDA AEEAFFA
Poetic Form
Metre 11110001 0111110 01010111 01011101 01010011 11010101 1110001 11110001 11010111 11110011 11010101 11100101 11010111 11011111 11110101 10010101 01010101 11110101 11110101 11010111 11110101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 732
Words 140
Sentences 10
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 7, 7, 7
Lines Amount 21
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 191
Words per stanza (avg) 46
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

42 sec read
41

Robert Underwood Johnson

Robert Underwood Johnson (January 12, 1853 – October 14, 1937) was an American writer and diplomat. His wife was Katharine Johnson. more…

All Robert Underwood Johnson poems | Robert Underwood Johnson Books

0 fans

Discuss this Robert Underwood Johnson poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Wistful Days" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/43450/the-wistful-days>.

    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!

    More poems by

    Robert Underwood Johnson

    »

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    6
    hours
    45
    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?

    »
    A brief and intentional reference to a historical, mythological, or literary person, place, event, or movement is called a _______.
    A metaphor
    B allusion
    C simile
    D hyperbole