Analysis of Quiet Work
Matthew Arnold 1822 (Laleham) – 1888 (Liverpool)
One lesson, Nature, let me learn of thee,
One lesson which in every wind is blown,
One lesson of two duties kept at one
Though the loud world proclaim their enmity--
Of toil unsever'd from tranquility!
Of labor, that in lasting fruit outgrows
Far noisier schemes, accomplish'd in repose,
Too great for haste, too high for rivalry.
Yes, while on earth a thousand discords ring,
Man's fitful uproar mingling with his toil,
Still do thy sleepless ministers move on,
Their glorious tasks in silence perfecting;
Still working, blaming still our vain turmoil,
Laborers that shall not fail, when man is gone.
Scheme | AXXA ABBA CDX CDX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101011111 11010100111 1101110111 1011011100 11110100 110101011 11001010001 1111111100 111101011 1101100111 1111010011 11001010010 1101011011 10011111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 609 |
Words | 103 |
Sentences | 4 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 3, 3 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 119 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 25 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 13, 2023
- 31 sec read
- 123 Views
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"Quiet Work" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/27276/quiet-work>.
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