Sea Fever, revisited (by John Masefield)



I MUST go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a gray mist on the sea's face, and a gray dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.
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Written on February 27, 1925

Submitted by dougb.21370 on February 27, 2023

Modified by dougb.21370 on February 27, 2023

54 sec read
11

Quick analysis:

Scheme AABB CCBB DDEE
Closest metre Iambic octameter
Characters 765
Words 173
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4

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