Analysis of A Hymn Of The Many

Ambrose Bierce 1842 (Meigs County) – 1914 (Chihuahua)



God's people sorely were oppressed,
I heard their lamentations long;
I hear their singing, clear and strong,
I see their banners in the West!

The captains shout the battle-cry,
The legions muster in their might;
They turn their faces to the light,
They lift their arms, they testify:

'We sank beneath the Master's thong,
Our chafing chains were ne'er undone;
Now clash your lances in the sun
And bless your banners with a song!

'God bides his time with patient eyes
While tyrants build upon the land;
He lifts his face, he lifts his hand,
And from the stones his temples rise.

'Now Freedom waves her joyous wing
Beyond the foemen's shields of gold.
March forward, singing, for, behold,
The right shall rule while God is king!'


Scheme ABBA CDDC BEEB FGGF HIIH
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 11010001 11111 11110101 11110001 01010101 01010011 11110101 1111110 11010101 101010101 1111001 01110101 11111101 11010101 11111111 01011101 11010101 0101111 11010101 01111111
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 715
Words 130
Sentences 6
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 28
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 114
Words per stanza (avg) 25
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

39 sec read
110

Ambrose Bierce

Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce was an American editorialist, journalist, short story writer, fabulist, and satirist. more…

All Ambrose Bierce poems | Ambrose Bierce Books

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