Analysis of From The German Of Uhland

James Weldon Johnson 1871 (Jacksonville) – 1938 (Wiscasset)



Three students once tarried over the Rhine,
And into Frau Wirthin's turned to dine.

'Say, hostess, have you good beer and wine?
And where is that pretty daughter of thine?'

'My beer and wine is fresh and clear.
My daughter lies on her funeral bier.'

They softly tipped into the room;
She lay there in the silent gloom.

The first the white cloth gently raised,
And tearfully upon her gazed.

'If thou wert alive, O, lovely maid,
My heart at thy feet would to-day be laid!'

The second covered her face again,
And turned away with grief and pain.

'Ah, thou upon thy snow-white bier!
And I have loved thee so many a year.'

The third drew back again the veil,
And kissed the lips so cold and pale.

'I've loved thee always, I love thee to-day,
And will love thee, yes, forever and aye!'


Scheme AA AA BC DD EE FF XX CB GG XX
Poetic Form Etheree  (35%)
Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 110111001 00111111 110111101 0111101011 11011101 1101101001 11010101 11100101 01011101 01000101 111011101 1111111111 010100101 01011101 11011111 0111111001 01110101 01011101 111111111 0111101001
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 768
Words 152
Sentences 14
Stanzas 10
Stanza Lengths 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 30
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 59
Words per stanza (avg) 15
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

44 sec read
56

James Weldon Johnson

James Weldon Johnson was an American author, educator, lawyer, diplomat, songwriter, and early civil rights activist. Johnson is best remembered for his leadership within the NAACP as well as for his writing, which includes novels, poems, and anthologies. He was also the first African-American professor at New York University. Later in life he was a professor of creative literature and writing at Fisk University. more…

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