Analysis of Circle and Square

Edwin Muir 1887 (Orkney) – 1959 (Cambridge)



‘I give you half of me;
No more, lest I should make
A ground for perjury.
For your sake, for my sake,
Half will you take?’

‘Half I’ll not take nor give,
For he who gives gives all.
By halves you cannot live;
Then let the barrier fall,
In one circle have all.’

“A wise and ancient scorner
Said to me once: Beware
The road that has no corner
Where you can linger and stare.
Choose the square.

‘And let the circle run
Its dull and fevered race.
You, my dear, are one;
Show your soul in your face;
Maintain your place.

‘Give, but have something to give.
No man can want you all.
Live, and learn to live.
When all the barriers fall
You are nothing at all.’


Scheme ABABB CDEDD FFFFF GHGHH CDEDD
Poetic Form Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 111111 111111 011100 111111 1111 111111 111111 111101 1101001 011011 010101 111101 0111110 1111001 101 010101 110101 11111 111011 0111 1111011 111111 10111 1101001 111011
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 677
Words 134
Sentences 13
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 5, 5, 5, 5, 5
Lines Amount 25
Letters per line (avg) 20
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 98
Words per stanza (avg) 26
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

40 sec read
153

Edwin Muir

Edwin Muir was an Orcadian poet, novelist and translator, born on a farm in Deerness on the Orkney Islands. He is remembered for his deeply felt and vivid poetry in plain language with few stylistic preoccupations. more…

All Edwin Muir poems | Edwin Muir Books

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