French Leave
Claude McKay 1889 (Clarendon Parish) – 1948 (Chicago)
No servile little fear shall daunt my will
This morning. I have courage steeled to say
I will be lazy, conqueringly still,
I will not lose the hours in toil this day.
The roaring world without, careless of souls,
Shall leave me to my placid dream of rest,
My four walls shield me from its shouting ghouls,
And all its hates have fled my quiet breast.
And I will loll here resting, wide awake,
Dead to the world of work, the world of love,
I laze contented just for dreaming's sake
With not the slightest urge to think or move.
How tired unto death, how tired I was!
Now for a day I put my burdens by,
And like a child amidst the meadow grass
Under the southern sun, I languid lie
And feel the bed about me kindly deep,
My strength ooze gently from my hollow bones,
My worried brain drift aimlessly to sleep,
Like softening to a song of tuneful tones.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 26, 2023
- 49 sec read
- 262 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB XCXC DXDX XEXE FGFG |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 858 |
Words | 165 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"French Leave" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/6857/french-leave>.
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