Esther, A Sonnet Sequence: XVI
Wilfrid Scawen Blunt 1840 (Petworth House) – 1922 (United Kingdom)
Oh, 'tis a terrible thing in early youth
To be assailed by laughter and mute shame,
A terrible thing to be befooled forsooth
By one's own foolish face betrayed in flame.
The little traitor, when she saw me dumb,
Went on to clap her hands, till all and each
Took up the jest and called on me to come
And prove my courage in the manly breach.
The imperious queen stood waiting for me there,
Pointing and beckoning, and the crowd closed in.
Under the cover of a wilder air
From the brass band, the darkness and the din,
I know not how it was, in fear or fun,
I touched that monster's knee, and all was done.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 36 sec read
- 117 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABABCDCDEFEFGG |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 599 |
Words | 120 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
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"Esther, A Sonnet Sequence: XVI" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/38698/esther,-a-sonnet-sequence:-xvi>.
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