Analysis of The Choice

Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)



He'd have given me rolling lands,
  Houses of marble, and billowing farms,
Pearls, to trickle between my hands,
  Smoldering rubies, to circle my arms.
You- you'd only a lilting song,
  Only a melody, happy and high,
You were sudden and swift and strong-
  Never a thought for another had I.

He'd have given me laces rare,
  Dresses that glimmered with frosty sheen,
Shining ribbons to wrap my hair,
  Horses to draw me, as fine as a queen.
You- you'd only to whistle low,
  Gayly I followed wherever you led.
I took you, and I let him go-
  Somebody ought to examine my head!


Scheme ABABCDCD EFEFGHGH
Poetic Form Traditional rhyme
Metre 11101101 1011001001 11100111 1001011011 1110011 1001001001 10100101 1001101011 11101101 10111101 10101111 1011111101 11101101 111001011 11101111 101101011
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 569
Words 105
Sentences 6
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 8
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 215
Words per stanza (avg) 52
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

32 sec read
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Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. more…

All Dorothy Parker poems | Dorothy Parker Books

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    »
    Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not _______ both
    A choose
    B follow
    C see
    D travel