Grief
Elizabeth Barrett Browning 1806 (Kelloe) – 1861 (Florence)
I TELL you, hopeless grief is passionless;
That only men incredulous of despair,
Half-taught in anguish, through the midnight air
Beat upward to God's throne in loud access
Of shrieking and reproach. Full desertness,
In souls as countries, lieth silent-bare
Under the blanching, vertical eye-glare
Of the absolute Heavens. Deep-hearted man, express
Grief for thy Dead in silence like to death--
Most like a monumental statue set
In everlasting watch and moveless woe
Till itself crumble to the dust beneath.
Touch it; the marble eyelids are not wet:
If it could weep, it could arise and go.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 03, 2023
- 30 sec read
- 294 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABBAABBACDEFDE |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 585 |
Words | 99 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
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"Grief" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/10229/grief>.
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