Analysis of The Blue Mountains

Henry Lawson 1867 (Grenfell) – 1922 (Sydney)




Above the ashes straight and tall,
 Through ferns with moisture dripping,
I climb beneath the sandstone wall,
 My feet on mosses slipping.

Like ramparts round the valley's edge
 The tinted cliffs are standing,
With many a broken wall and ledge,
 And many a rocky landing.

And round about their rugged feet
 Deep ferny dells are hidden
In shadowed depths, whence dust and heat
 Are banished and forbidden.

The stream that, crooning to itself,
 Comes down a tireless rover,
Flows calmly to the rocky shelf,
 And there leaps bravely over.

Now pouring down, now lost in spray
 When mountain breezes sally,
The water strikes the rock midway,
 And leaps into the valley.

Now in the west the colours change,
 The blue with crimson blending;
Behind the far Dividing Range,
 The sun is fast descending.

And mellowed day comes o'er the place,
 And softens ragged edges;
The rising moon's great placid face
 Looks gravely o'er the ledges.


Scheme ABAB CBCB DEDE FGFG HIHI JBJB KXKX
Poetic Form Quatrain  (86%)
Metre 01010101 1111010 1101011 1111010 1110101 0101110 110010101 01001010 01011101 111110 01011101 1100100 01110101 11010010 11010101 0111010 11011101 1101010 0101011 0101010 1001011 0111010 01010101 0111010 010111001 0101010 01011101 11010010
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 941
Words 157
Sentences 8
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 26
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 104
Words per stanza (avg) 22
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

48 sec read
153

Henry Lawson

Henry Lawson 17 June 1867 - 2 September 1922 was an Australian writer and poet Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial period more…

All Henry Lawson poems | Henry Lawson Books

3 fans

Discuss this Henry Lawson poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Blue Mountains" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 8 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/17956/the-blue-mountains>.

    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.
    23
    days
    9
    hours
    2
    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?

    »
    The way the lines look on the page is known as ________.
    A Stanza
    B Line
    C Form
    D Paragraph