Analysis of Elegy II. On The Death Of The University Beadle At Cambridge.
William Cowper 1731 (Berkhamsted) – 1800 (Dereham)
Thee, whose refulgent staff and summons clear,
Minerva's flock longtime was wont t'obey,
Although thyself an herald, famous here,
The last of heralds, Death, has snatch'd away.
He calls on all alike, nor even deigns
To spare the office that himself sustains.
Thy locks were whiter than the plumes display'd
By Leda's paramourin ancient time,
But thou wast worthy ne'er to have decay'd,
Or, Aeson-like,to know a second prime,
Worthy for whom some Goddess should have won
New life, oft kneeling to Apollo's son.
Commission'd to convene with hasty call
The gowned tribes, how graceful wouldst thou stand!
So stood Cylleniuserst in Priam's hall,
Wing-footed messenger of Jove's command,
And so, Eurybateswhen he address'd
To Peleus' son Atrides' proud behest.
Dread Queen of sepulchres! whose rig'rous laws
And watchful eyes, run through the realms below,
Oh, oft too adverse to Minerva's cause,
Too often to the Muse not less a foe,
Chose meaner marks, and with more equal aim
Pierce useless drones, earth's burthen and its shame!
Flow, therefore, tears for Him from ev'ry eye,
All ye disciples of the Muses, weep!
Assembling, all, in robes of sable dye,
Around his bier, lament his endless sleep,
And let complaining Elegy rehearse
In every School her sweetest saddest verse.
Scheme | XAXABB CDCDEE FGFGHH XIXIJJ KLKLMM |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 11110101 11111101 11110101 0111011101 1111011101 1101010101 1101010101 111101 1111011101 11110101 1011110111 1111010101 0101011101 011110111 111011 1101001101 011101 1111101 1111111 0101110101 11101111 1101011101 1101011101 110111011 11111111 1101010101 01001011101 0111011101 0101010001 01001010101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,256 |
Words | 213 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 6, 6, 6, 6 |
Lines Amount | 30 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 201 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 42 |
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:08 min read
- 6 Views
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"Elegy II. On The Death Of The University Beadle At Cambridge." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/57006/elegy-ii.-on-the-death-of-the-university-beadle-at-cambridge.>.
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