Surprise

Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)



My heart went fluttering with fear
Lest you should go, and leave me here
To beat my breast and rock my head
And stretch me sleepless on my bed.
Ah, clear they see and true they say
That one shall weep, and one shall stray
For such is Love's unvarying law....
I never thought, I never saw
That I should be the first to go;
How pleasant that it happened so!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 19, 2023

22 sec read
422

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCCDDEEFF
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 354
Words 73
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 10

Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. more…

All Dorothy Parker poems | Dorothy Parker Books

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    "Surprise" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/8240/surprise>.

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