Analysis of The Guest House
John Le Gay Brereton 1871 (Sydney) – 1933
What imps are these that come with scowl and leer?
Black motes upon the morning's amber beam,
They crowd and float about each happy dream
And blow upon pure joy the taint of fear.
Perforce those muttered hideous words we hear,
Yet bid our nobler nature rise supreme
And, sunlike, dry to naught th' infernal steam
Till all our day is luminous and clear.
“What cruel beasts find refuge in the soul
Amid the murky deep of sightless flame
Whose waves are flatten'd by a rain of blood!”
Nay, but however pure the waters roll,
The offal thrown therein will rise and shame
Their glittering pride with bubbles from the mud.
Scheme | ABBAABBACDECDE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111111101 1101010101 1101011101 0101110111 01110100111 11101010101 01111110101 11101110001 1101110001 010101111 1111010111 111010101 011011101 11001110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 614 |
Words | 114 |
Sentences | 6 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 35 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 489 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 111 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 34 sec read
- 23 Views
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"The Guest House" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/23704/the-guest-house>.
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