Analysis of Deaf Martha
Ann Taylor 1782 (Islington) – 1866
Poor Martha is old, and her hair is turn'd grey,
And her hearing has left her for many a year;
Ten to one if she knows what it is that you say,
Though she puts her poor wither'd hand close to her ear.
I've seen naughty children run after her fast,
And cry, "Martha, run, there's a bullock so bold;"
And when she was frighten'd, laugh at her at last,
Because she believed the sad stories they told.
I've seen others put their mouths close to her ear,
And make signs as if they had something to say;
And when she said, "Master, I'm deaf and can't hear,"
Point at her and mock her, and scamper away.
Ah! wicked the children poor Martha to tease,
As if she had not enough else to endure;
They rather should try her affliction to ease,
And soothe a disorder that nothing can cure.
One day, when those children themselves are grown old,
And one may be deaf, and another be lame,
Perhaps they may find that some children, as bold,
May tease them, and mock them, and serve them the same.
Then, when they reflect on the days of their youth,
A faithful account will their consciences keep,
And teach them, with shame and with sorrow, the truth,
That "what a man soweth, the same shall he reap."
Scheme | AXAB CDCD BABA EFEF DGDG HIHI |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (83%) |
Metre | 11011001111 001011011001 111111111111 111011011101 11101011001 01101101011 01111011011 01101011011 11101111101 01111111011 01111011011 11001001001 11001011011 11111011101 11011001011 01001011011 11111001111 01111001011 01111111011 11101101101 11101101111 01001111001 01111011001 1101101111 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,194 |
Words | 230 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 38 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 151 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 38 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:10 min read
- 106 Views
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"Deaf Martha" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/2933/deaf-martha>.
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