The Day of Battle
Alfred Edward Housman 1859 – 1936
"Far I hear the bugle blow
To call me where I would not go,
And the guns begin the song,
'Soldier, fly or stay for long.'
"Comrade, if to turn and fly
Made a soldier never die,
Fly I would, for who would not?
'Tis sure no pleasure to be shot.
"But since the man that runs away
Lives to die another day,
And cowards' funerals, when they come,
Are not wept so well at home,
"Therefore, though the best is bad,
Stand and do the best, my lad;
Stand and fight and see your slain,
And take the bullet in your brain."
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 31 sec read
- 126 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AABB CCDD EEXX FFGG |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 518 |
Words | 107 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"The Day of Battle" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/915/the-day-of-battle>.
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