Analysis of The Dead Beggar
AN ELEGY.
Addressed to a Lady, who was affected at seeing the
Funeral of a nameless Pauper, buried at the ex-
pense of the Parish, in the Church-Yard at Bright-
helmstone, in November 1792.
SWELLS then thy feeling heart, and streams thine eye
O'er the deserted being, poor and old,
Whom cold, reluctant, parish charity
Consigns to mingle with his kindred mould?
Mourn'st thou, that here the time-worn sufferer ends
Those evil days still threatening woes to come;
Here, where the friendless feel no want of friends,
Where even the houseless wanderer finds a home!
What though no kindred crowd in sable forth,
And sigh, or seem to sigh, around his bier;
Though o'er his coffin with the humid earth
No children drop the unavailing tear?
Rather rejoice that here his sorrows cease,
Whom sickness, age, and poverty oppress'd;
Where death, the leveller, restores to peace
The wretch who living knew not where to rest.
Rejoice, that though an outcast spurn'd by fate,
Through penury's rugged path his race he ran;
In earth's cold bosom, equall'd with the great,
Death vindicates the insulted rights of man.
Rejoice, that though severe his earthly doom,
And rude, and sown with thorns the way he trod,
Now, (where unfeeling fortune cannot come)
He rests upon the mercies of his God.
Scheme | AXXXXXBABCDCX XXXXEFEFGHGHXIDI |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1100 011010110101100 10010101010101 11010001111 10010 1111010111 10001010101 1101010100 111011101 111110111001 11011100111 110111111 11001100101 1111010101 0111110111 11011010101 110100101 1001111101 1101010001 11010111 0111011111 011111111 111011111 011101101 1100010111 0111011101 0101110111 1101010101 1101010111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,256 |
Words | 219 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 13, 16 |
Lines Amount | 29 |
Letters per line (avg) | 35 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 502 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 109 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:08 min read
- 109 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Dead Beggar" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/5666/the-dead-beggar>.
Discuss this Charlotte Smith poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In