Analysis of The Old Trundle-Bed
James Whitcomb Riley 1849 (Greenfield) – 1916 (Indianapolis)
O the old trundle-bed where I slept when a boy!
What canopied king might not covet the joy?
The glory and peace of that slumber of mine,
Like a long, gracious rest in the bosom divine:
The quaint, homely couch, hidden close from the light,
But daintily drawn from its hiding at night.
O a nest of delight, from the foot to the head,
Was the queer little, clear little, old trundle-bed!
O the old trundle-bed, where I wondering saw
The stars through the window, and listened with awe
To the sigh of the winds as they tremblingly crept
Through the trees where the robin so restlessly slept:
Where I heard the low, murmurous chirp of the wren,
And the katydid listlessly chirrup again,
Till my fancies grew faint and were drowsily led
Through the maze of the dreams of the old trundle bed.
O the old trundle-bed! O the old trundle-bed!
With its plump little pillow, and old-fashioned spread;
Its snowy-white sheets, and the blankets above,
Smoothed down and tucked round with the touches of love;
The voice of my mother to lull me to sleep
With the old fairy-stories my memories keep
Still fresh as the lilies that bloom o'er the head
Once bowed o'er my own in the old trundle-bed.
Scheme | AABBCCDD XXEEFFDD DDGGHHDD |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 101101111101 111111001 01001111011 101101001001 01101101101 111111011 101101101101 101101101101 101101111001 01101001011 1011011111 101101011001 1110111101 0010100101 1110110011 101101101101 101101101101 111101001101 11011001001 11011101011 01111011111 101101011001 111010111001 111011001101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,163 |
Words | 215 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 39 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 309 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 71 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:05 min read
- 61 Views
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