Analysis of The Offer
Charles Lamb 1775 (Inner Temple, London) – 1834 (Edmonton, London)
'Tell me, would you rather be
Changed by a fairy to the fine
Young orphan heiress Geraldine,
Or still be Emily?
'Consider, ere you answer me,
How many blessings are procured
By riches, and how much endured
By chilling poverty.'
After a pause, said Emily:
'In the words orphan heiress I
Find many a solid reason why
I would not changëd be.
'What though I live in poverty,
And have of sisters eight-so many,
That few indulgencies, if any,
Fall to the share of me:
'Think you that for wealth I'd be
Of even the least of them bereft,
Or lose my parent, and be left
An orphaned Emily?
'Still should I be Emily,
Although I looked like Geraldine;
I feel within this heart of mine
No change could workëd be.'
Scheme | ABCA ADDA AEEA AAAA AFFA ACBA |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (67%) |
Metre | 1111101 11010101 11010001 111100 01011101 11010101 11001101 110100 10011100 00110101 110010101 111111 11110100 011101110 111110 110111 1111111 110011101 11110011 110100 1111100 1111001 11011111 111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 687 |
Words | 135 |
Sentences | 6 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 90 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 22 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 40 sec read
- 97 Views
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"The Offer" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/5404/the-offer>.
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