Analysis of Red Is The Color Of Blood
Conrad Potter Aiken 1889 (Savannah, Georgia) – 1973 (Savannah, Georgia)
Red is the color of blood, and I will seek it:
I have sought it in the grass.
It is the color of steep sun seen through eyelids.
It is hidden under the suave flesh of women-
Flows there, quietly flows.
It mounts from the heart to the temples, the singing mouth-
As cold sap climbs to the rose.
I am confused in webs and knots of scarlet
Spun from the darkness;
Or shuttled from the mouths of thirsty spiders.
Madness for red! I devour the leaves of autumn.
I tire of the green of the world.
I am myself a mouth for blood…
Here, in the golden haze of the late slant sun,
Let us walk, with the light in our eyes,
To a single bench from the outset predetermined.
Look: there are seagulls in these city skies,
Kindled against the blue.
But I do not think of the seagulls, I think of you.
Your eyes, with the late sun in them,
Are like blue pools dazzled with yellow petals.
This pale green suits them well.
Here is your finger, with an emerald on it:
The one I gave you. I say these things politely-
But what I think beneath them, who can tell?
For I think of you, crumpled against a whiteness;
Flayed and torn, with a dulled face.
I think of you, writing, a thing of scarlet,
And myself, rising red from that embrace.
November sun is sunlight poured through honey:
Old things, in such a light, grow subtle and fine.
Bare oaks are like still fire.
Talk to me: now we drink the evening's wine.
Look, how our shadows creep along the grave!-
And this way, how the gravel begins to shine!
This is the time of day for recollections,
For sentimental regrets, oblique allusions,
Rose-leaves, shrivelled in a musty jar.
Scatter them to the wind! There are tempests coming.
It is dark, with a windy star.
If human mouths were really roses, my dear,-
(Why must we link things so?-)
I would tear yours petal by petal with slow murder.
I would pluck the stamens, the pistils,
The gold and the green,-
Spreading the subtle sweetness that was your breath
On a cold wave of death….
Now let us walk back, slowly, as we came.
We will light the room with candles; they may shine
Like rows of yellow eyes.
Your hair is like spun fire, by candle-flame.
You smile at me-say nothing. You are wise.
For I think of you, flung down brutal darkness;
Crushed and red, with pale face.
I think of you, with your hair disordered and dripping.
And myself, rising red from that embrace.
Scheme | abx cdxdefx xxx cgxghh xxi aji fkeK jlmlxl nnopo xxmbxqq rlgrg fkpK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 110101101111 1111001 11010111111 111010011110 111001 1110110100101 1111101 11010101110 11010 11010111010 1011101001110 110101101 1110111 10010110111 1111010101 10101101010 111101101 100101 111111011111 11101101 11111011010 111111 11110111011 011111111010 1111011111 111111001010 1011011 11111001110 011011101 0101111110 11010111001 1111110 1111110101 1110110101 01110100111 1101111010 10100101010 11100101 10110111110 11110101 11010101011 111111 1111101101110 1110101 01001 10010101111 101111 1111110111 11101110111 111101 11111101101 1111110111 11111111010 101111 1111111010010 011011101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,362 |
Words | 449 |
Sentences | 38 |
Stanzas | 12 |
Stanza Lengths | 3, 7, 3, 6, 3, 3, 4, 6, 5, 7, 5, 4 |
Lines Amount | 56 |
Letters per line (avg) | 32 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 151 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 37 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 2:15 min read
- 114 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Red Is The Color Of Blood" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/7032/red-is-the-color-of-blood>.
Discuss this Conrad Potter Aiken 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