The Spirit Medium

William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)



POETRY, music, I have loved, and yet
Because of those new dead
That come into my soul and escape
Confusion of the bed,
Or those begotten or unbegotten
Perning in a band,

I bend my body to the spade
Or grope with a dirty hand.

Or those begotten or unbegotten,
For I would not recall
Some that being unbegotten
Are not individual,
But copy some one action,
Moulding it of dust or sand,

I bend my body to the spade
Or grope with a dirty hand.

An old ghost's thoughts are lightning,
To follow is to die;
Poetry and music I have banished,
But the stupidity
Of root, shoot, blossom or clay
Makes no demand.

I bend my body to the spade
Or grope with a dirty hand.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

39 sec read
80

Quick analysis:

Scheme xaxaBc DC Bxbxbc DC xxxxxc DC
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 641
Words 130
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 6, 2, 6, 2, 6, 2

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. more…

All William Butler Yeats poems | William Butler Yeats Books

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