Suicide's Stone

Robinson Jeffers 1887 (Allegheny) – 1962 (Carmel-by-the-Sea)



Peace is the heir of dead desire,
Whether abundance killed the cormorant
In a happy hour, or sleep or death
Drowned him deep in dreamy waters,
Peace is the ashes of that fire,
The heir of that king, the inn of that journey.

This last and best and goal: we dead
Hold it so tight you are envious of us
And fear under sunk lids contempt.
Death-day greetings are the sweetest.
Let trumpets roar when a man dies
And rockets fly up, he has found his fortune.

Yet hungering long and pitiably
That way, you shall not reach a finger
To pluck it unripe and before dark
Creep to cover: life broke ten whipstocks
Over my back, broke faith, stole hope,
Before I denounced the covenant of courage.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

39 sec read
117

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXXBAX XXXXXX XAXBXX
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 674
Words 130
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6

Robinson Jeffers

John Robinson Jeffers was an American poet, known for his work about the central California coast. more…

All Robinson Jeffers poems | Robinson Jeffers Books

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