Analysis of On the Uses of Adversity
Franklin P. Adams 1881 (Chicago, Illinois) – 1960 (New York City, New York)
"Nam nihil est, quod non mortalibus afferat usum."
Nothing there is that mortal man may utterly despise;
What in our wealth we treasured, in our poverty we prize.
The gold upon a sinking ship has often wrecked the boat,
While on a simple oar a shipwrecked man may keep afloat.
The burglar seeks the plutocrat, attracted by his dress--
The poor man finds his poverty the true preparedness.
| Scheme | X AA BB XX |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | |
| Metre | 110111111 10111101110001 1010111001010011 01010101110101 1101010111101 0101010010111 01111100010100 |
| Closest metre | Iambic heptameter |
| Characters | 404 |
| Words | 72 |
| Sentences | 5 |
| Stanzas | 4 |
| Stanza Lengths | 1, 2, 2, 2 |
| Lines Amount | 7 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 44 |
| Words per line (avg) | 10 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 77 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 17 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 21 sec read
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"On the Uses of Adversity" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 5 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/14149/on-the-uses-of-adversity>.
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