Analysis of The Trial of the Gods
NEVER nobler was the Senate,
Never grander the debate:
Rome's old gods are on their trial
By the judges of the state!
Torn by warring creeds, the Fathers
Urge to-day the question home—
'Whether Jupiter or Jesus
Shall be God henceforth in Rome?'
Lo, the scene! In Jove's own temple,
As of old, the Fathers meet;
Through the porch, to hear the speeches,
Press the people from the street.
Pontiffs, rich with purple vesture,
Pass from senate chair to chair;
Learned augurs, still as statues—
Voiceless statues, too—are there;
Vestal virgins, white with terror,
Mutely asking—what has come?
What new light shall turn to darkness
Vesta's holy fire in Rome?
Answer, Quindecemvirs! Surely,
Of this wondrous Nazarene
Ye must know, who keep the secrets
Of the prophet Sibylline?
Nay, no word! Here stand the Flamens:
Have ye read the omens, priests?
Slain the victims, white and sable,
Scanned the entrails of the beast?
Priest of Pallas, see! the people
Ask for oracles to-day:
Silent! Priests of Mars and Venus?
Lo, they turn, dumb-lipped, away!
Priest of Jove? Flamen dialis!
Here in Jove's own temple meet
In debate the Roman Senate,
And Jove's priest with timid feet
Stands beyond the altar railing!
Gods, I feel ye frown above!
In the shadow of Jove's altar
Men defy the might of Jove!
Treason riots in the temple
At the sacrilege profound:
Virgins mocked, and augurs banished,
And divinities discrowned!
Hush! Old Rome herself appeareth,
Pleading for the ancient faith:
Urging all her by-gone glory—
That to change the old were death.
Rudely answer the patricians,
Scoffing at the time-worn snare:
Twice a thousand years of sacrifice
Have melted into air;
Twice a thousand years of worship
Have bitterly sufficed
To prove there is no Jupiter!
The Senate votes for Christ!
Not aimless is the story,
The moral not remote:
For still the gods are questioned,
And still the Senates vote.
Men sacrifice to Venus;
To Mars are victims led;
And Mercury is honored still;
And Bacchus is not dead;—
But these are minor deities
That cling to human sight:
Our twilight they—but Right and Wrong
Are clear as day and night.
We know the Truth: but falsehood
With our lives is so inwove—
Our Senates vote down Jesus
As old Rome degraded Jove!
Scheme | ABCBDEFE CGXGHHXHHXFE XIXIDXCX CJFJDGAGXKHK CXXALLHLXHXHXMHM HNXNFOXOXPXPXKFK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 10101010 1010001 11111110 1010101 11101010 1110101 10100110 1111101 10101110 1110101 10111010 1010101 111101 1110111 110111 101111 10101110 110111 11111110 1101001 10110 11101 11111010 10101 1111101 1110101 10101010 1010101 11101010 1110011 10111010 1111101 11111 1011101 00101010 0111101 10101010 1111101 0011110 1010111 10100010 1010001 10101010 001001 111011 1010101 10101110 1110101 10100010 110111 10101110 110011 10101110 110001 11111100 010111 1101010 010101 1101110 01011 110110 111101 01001101 010111 11110100 111101 10111101 111101 110111 1101111 1011110 1110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 2,228 |
Words | 384 |
Sentences | 29 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 12, 8, 12, 16, 16 |
Lines Amount | 72 |
Letters per line (avg) | 24 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 291 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 63 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:56 min read
- 40 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Trial of the Gods" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/22081/the-trial-of-the-gods>.
Discuss this John Boyle O'Reilly poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In