Analysis of The Nobleman's Wedding
William Allingham 1824 (Ballyshannon) – 1889 (Hampstead)
I once was a guest at a Nobleman's wedding;
Fair was the Bride, but she scarce had been kind,
And now in our mirth, she had tears nigh the shedding
Her former true lover still runs in her mind.
Attired like a minstrel, her former true lover
Takes up his harp, and runs over the strings;
And there among strangers, his grief to discover,
A fair maiden's falsehood he bitterly sings.
'Now here is the token of gold that was broken;
Seven long years it was kept for your sake;
You gave it to me as a true lover's token;
No longer I'll wear it, asleep or awake.'
She sat in her place by the head of the table,
The words of his ditty she mark'd them right well:
To sit any longer this bride was not able,
So down at the bridegroom's feet she fell.
'O one, one request, my lord, one and no other,
O this one request will you grant it to me?
To lie for this night in the arms of my mother,
And ever, and ever thereafter with thee.'
Her one, one request it was granted her fairly;
Pale were her cheeks as she went up to bed;
And the very next morning, early, early,
They rose and they found this young bride was dead.
The bridegroom ran quickly, he held her, he kiss'd her,
He spoke loud and low, and listen'd full fain;
He call'd on her waiting-maids round to assist her
But nothing could bring the lost breath back again.
O carry her softly! the grave is made ready;
At head and at foot plant a laurel-bush green;
For she was a young and a sweet noble lady,
The fairest young bride that I ever have seen.
Scheme | ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH CICI IJIJ CXCX IKIK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (88%) |
Metre | 111011010010 1101111111 0101011111010 01011011001 011010010110 1111011001 010110111010 011111001 111010111110 1011111111 111111011010 11011101101 110011011010 01111011111 111010111110 11101111 111011110110 11101111111 111110011110 01001001011 011011110010 1001111111 00101101010 1101111111 01110110110 1110101011 111010111010 11011011101 110010011110 11011101011 111010011010 01011111011 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,475 |
Words | 298 |
Sentences | 11 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 36 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 143 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 37 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:31 min read
- 114 Views
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"The Nobleman's Wedding" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/39030/the-nobleman%27s-wedding>.
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