Analysis of I have a Rendezvous with Death
Alan Seeger 1888 (New York City) – 1916
I have a rendezvous with Death
At some disputed barricade,
When Spring comes back with rustling shade
And apple-blossoms fill the air—
I have a rendezvous with Death
When Spring brings back blue days and fair.
It may be he shall take my hand
And lead me into his dark land
And close my eyes and quench my breath—
It may be I shall pass him still.
I have a rendezvous with Death
On some scarred slope of battered hill,
When Spring comes round again this year
And the first meadow-flowers appear.
God knows 'twere better to be deep
Pillowed in silk and scented down,
Where love throbs out in blissful sleep,
Pulse nigh to pulse, and breath to breath,
Where hushed awakenings are dear . . .
But I've a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true,
I shall not fail that rendezvous.
Scheme | AbbcAc ddaeAeff ghgafahfii |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101011 1101010 11111101 01010101 1101011 11111101 11111111 01101111 01110111 11111111 1101011 11111101 11110111 00111001 11110111 1010101 11110101 11110111 11111 1101011 1101101 11110111 01111111 1111110 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 852 |
Words | 160 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 8, 10 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 227 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 54 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 16, 2023
- 48 sec read
- 202 Views
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"I have a Rendezvous with Death" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/300/i-have-a-rendezvous-with-death>.
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