Friends
William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)
NOW must I these three praise --
Three women that have wrought
What joy is in my days:
One because no thought,
Nor those unpassing cares,
No, not in these fifteen
Many-times-troubled years,
Could ever come between
Mind and delighted mind;
And one because her hand
Had strength that could unbind
What none can understand,
What none can have and thrive,
Youth's dreamy load, till she
So changed me that I live
Labouring in ecstasy.
And what of her that took
All till my youth was gone
With scarce a pitying look?
How could I praise that one?
When day begins to break
I count my good and bad,
Being wakeful for her sake,
Remembering what she had,
What eagle look still shows,
While up from my heart's root
So great a sweetness flows
I shake from head to foot.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 27, 2023
- 43 sec read
- 539 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABABCDEDFGBGHIHIJKJLMNMNOPOQ |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 737 |
Words | 142 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 28 |
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"Friends" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 23 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/39333/friends>.
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