Analysis of Imagination



There is a dish to hold the sea,
A brazier to contain the sun,
A compass for the galaxy,
A voice to wake the dead and done!

That minister of ministers,
Imagination, gathers up
The undiscovered Universe,
Like jewels in a jasper cup.

Its flame can mingle north and south;
Its accent with the thunder strive;
The ruddy sentence of its mouth
Can make the ancient dead alive.

The mart of power, the fount of will,
The form and mould of every star,
The source and bound of good and ill,
The key of all the things that are,

Imagination, new and strange
In every age, can turn the year;
Can shift the poles and lightly change
The mood of men, the world's career.


Scheme ABAB XCXC DEDE FGFG HIHI
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 11011101 010010101 01010100 01110101 11001100 0010101 001010 11000101 11110101 10110101 01010111 11010101 011100111 010111001 01011101 01110111 0010101 010011101 11010101 01110101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 662
Words 126
Sentences 5
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 25
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 102
Words per stanza (avg) 25
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 23, 2023

38 sec read
144

John Davidson

John Wynn Davidson was a brigadier general in the United States Army during the American Civil War and an American Indian fighter. more…

All John Davidson poems | John Davidson Books

0 fans

Discuss this John Davidson poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Imagination" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 16 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/22433/imagination>.

    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!

    More poems by

    John Davidson

    »

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    14
    days
    10
    hours
    45
    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 word "poetry" is from the Greek term "poiesis", which means?
    A Making
    B Writing
    C Saying
    D Reading