Analysis of The Burning Book
Edwin Arlington Robinson 1869 – 1935
OR THE CONTENTED METAPHYSICIAN
TO the lore of no manner of men
Would his vision have yielded
When he found what will never again
From his vision be shielded,—
Though he paid with as much of his life
As a nun could have given,
And to-night would have been as a knife,
Devil-drawn, devil-driven.
For to-night, with his flame-weary eyes
On the work he is doing,
He considers the tinder that flies
And the quick flame pursuing.
In the leaves that are crinkled and curled
Are his ashes of glory,
And what once were an end of the world
Is an end of a story.
But he smiles, for no more shall his days
Be a toil and a calling
For a way to make others to gaze
On God’s face without falling.
He has come to the end of his words,
And alone he rejoices
In the choiring that silence affords
Of ineffable voices.
To a realm that his words may not reach
He may lead none to find him;
An adept, and with nothing to teach,
He leaves nothing behind him.
For the rest, he will have his release,
And his embers, attended
By the large and unclamoring peace
Of a dream that is ended.
Scheme | A ABABCACA DEDEFGFG HEHEXDXX IJIJKBKB |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 100101 101111011 1110110 111111001 1110110 111111111 1011110 011111101 1011010 111111101 1011110 101001011 0011010 00111101 1110110 011011101 1111010 111111111 1010010 101111011 1110110 111101111 00111 00111001 1010010 101111111 1111111 101011011 1110011 101111101 0110010 101011 1011110 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,067 |
Words | 210 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 33 |
Letters per line (avg) | 25 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 165 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 41 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 26, 2023
- 1:03 min read
- 1,673 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Burning Book" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 Oct. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/10034/the-burning-book>.
Discuss this Edwin Arlington Robinson poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In