Analysis of Veterans

Alfred Noyes 1880 (Wolverhampton) – 1958 (Isle of Wight)



When the last charge sounds
And the battle thunders o'er the plain,
Thunders o'er the trenches where the red streams flow,
Will it not be well with us,
Veterans, veterans,
If, beneath your torn old flag, we burst upon the foe?

When the last post sounds
And the night is on the battle-field,
Night and rest at last from all the tumult of our wars,
Will it not be well with us,
Veterans, veterans,
If, with duty done like yours, we lie beneath the stars?

When the great réveillé sounds
For the terrible last Sabbath,
All the legions of the dead shall hear the trumpet ring!
Will it not be well with us,
Veterans, veterans,
If, beneath your torn old flag, we rise to meet our King?


Scheme axbCDb axxCDx axeCDe
Poetic Form
Metre 10111 0010101001 101001010111 1111111 100100 1011111110101 10111 001110101 10111110101101 1111111 100100 1110111110101 101111 10100110 1010101110101 1111111 100100 10111111111101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 671
Words 129
Sentences 5
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6
Lines Amount 18
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 174
Words per stanza (avg) 42
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

39 sec read
132

Alfred Noyes

Alfred Noyes was an English poet best known for his ballads The Highwayman 1906 and The Barrel Organ more…

All Alfred Noyes poems | Alfred Noyes Books

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    "Veterans" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/1219/veterans>.

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