To J.Q.

Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906



WHAT are the things that make life bright?
A star gleam in the night.
What hearts us for the coming fray?
The dawn tints of the day.
What helps to speed the weary mile?
A brother's friendly smile.
What turns o' gold the evening gray?
A flower beside the way.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

15 sec read
140

Quick analysis:

Scheme AABBCCBB
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 259
Words 52
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 8

Paul Laurence Dunbar

Paul Laurence Dunbar was a seminal American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries Dunbar gained national recognition for his 1896 Lyrics of a Lowly Life one poem in the collection being Ode to Ethiopia more…

All Paul Laurence Dunbar poems | Paul Laurence Dunbar Books

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