Past days of gales

Philip Larkin 1922 (Coventry) – 1985 (Hull)



Past days of gales
When skies are colourless
The corn falls,
Dies; so for this space
Autumn is motionless.

Because the sun
So hesitates in this decay,
I think we still could turn,
Speak to each other in a different way;
For ways of speaking die,

And yet the sun pardons our voices still,
And berries in the hedge
Through all the nights of rain have come to the full,
And death seems like long hills, a range
We ride each day towards, and never reach.
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Submitted by RobertHaigh on June 26, 2020

Modified on March 14, 2023

25 sec read
67

Quick analysis:

Scheme AAXXX XBXBX XXXXX
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 436
Words 86
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 5, 5, 5

Philip Larkin

Philip Larkin was born in 1922 and grew up in Coventry, England. He earned his BA from St John's College, Oxford, and finished with First Class Honours in English. In 1955 he became Librarian of the Brynmor Jones Library at the University of Hull, a post he held until his death in 1985. He was the best-loved poet of his generation, and the recipient of innumerable honours, including the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. more…

All Philip Larkin poems | Philip Larkin Books

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