Analysis of Sorrow And Joys

George Meredith 1828 (Portsmouth, Hampshire) – 1909 (Box Hill, Surrey)



Bury thy sorrows, and they shall rise
As souls to the immortal skies,
And there look down like mothers' eyes.

But let thy joys be fresh as flowers,
That suck the honey of the showers,
And bloom alike on huts and towers.

So shall thy days be sweet and bright;
Solemn and sweet thy starry night,
Conscious of love each change of light.

The stars will watch the flowers asleep,
The flowers will feel the soft stars weep,
And both will mix sensations deep.

With these below, with those above,
Sits evermore the brooding dove,
Uniting both in bonds of love.

For both by nature are akin;
Sorrow, the ashen fruit of sin,
And joy, the juice of life within.

Children of earth are these; and those
The spirits of divine repose -
Death radiant o'er all human woes.

O, think what then had been thy doom,
If homeless and without a tomb
They had been left to haunt the gloom!

O, think again what now they are -
Motherly love, tho' dim and far,
Imaged in every lustrous star.

For they, in their salvation, know
No vestige of their former woe,
While thro' them all the heavens do flow.

Thus art thou wedded to the skies,
And watched by ever-loving eyes,
And warned by yearning sympathies.


Scheme AAA BBB CCC DDD EEE FFF GGG HHH III JJJ AAX
Poetic Form
Metre 101100111 11100101 01111101 111111110 110101010 010111010 11111101 10011101 10111111 011101001 010110111 01110101 11011101 1100101 01010111 11110101 10010111 01011101 10111101 01010101 1100101101 11111111 11000101 11111101 11011111 10011101 10100101 11010101 11011101 111101011 11110101 01110101 01110100
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,179
Words 219
Sentences 12
Stanzas 11
Stanza Lengths 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
Lines Amount 33
Letters per line (avg) 28
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 83
Words per stanza (avg) 20
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:06 min read
102

George Meredith

George Meredith was an English novelist and poet of the Victorian era. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature seven times. more…

All George Meredith poems | George Meredith Books

1 fan

Discuss this George Meredith poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Sorrow And Joys" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 7 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/15599/sorrow-and-joys>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    24
    days
    11
    hours
    8
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    A poem consisting of 14 lines, typically with a specific rhyme scheme, is called a _______.
    A limerick
    B sonnet
    C haiku
    D epic