Analysis of The Happy Townland
William Butler Yeats 1865 (Sandymount) – 1939 (Menton)
THERE'S many a strong farmer
Whose heart would break in two,
If he could see the townland
That we are riding to;
Boughs have their fruit and blossom
At all times of the year;
Rivers are running over
With red beer and brown beer.
An old man plays the bagpipes
In a golden and silver wood;
Queens, their eyes blue like the ice,
Are dancing in a crowd.
The little fox he murmured,
'O what of the world's bane?'
The sun was laughing sweetly,
The moon plucked at my rein;
But the little red fox murmured,
'O do not pluck at his rein,
He is riding to the townland
That is the world's bane.'
When their hearts are so high
That they would come to blows,
They unhook rheir heavy swords
From golden and silver boughs;
But all that are killed in battle
Awaken to life again.
It is lucky that their story
Is not known among men,
For O, the strong farmers
That would let the spade lie,
Their hearts would be like a cup
That somebody had drunk dry.
The little fox he murmured,
'O what of the world's bane?'
The sun was laughing sweetly,
The moon plucked at my rcin;
But the little red fox murmured,
'O do not pluck at his rein,
He is riding to the townland
That is the world's bane.'
Michael will unhook his trumpet
From a bough overhead,
And blow a little noise
When the supper has been spread.
Gabriel will come from the water
With a fish-tail, and talk
Of wonders that have happened
On wet roads where men walk.
And lift up an old horn
Of hammered silver, and drink
Till he has fallen asleep
Upon the starry brink.
The little fox he murmured,
'O what of the world's bane?'
The sun was laughing sweetly,
The moon plucked at my rein;
But the little red fox murmured.
'O do not pluck at his rein,
He is riding to the townland
That is the world's bane.'
Scheme | abcbdeaefcgcCHIHCHCHjklmnoiopjqjCHIhCHCHccrcascstuvuCHIHCHCH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Etheree (33%) |
Metre | 1100110 111101 111101 111101 1111010 111101 1011010 111011 111101 00100101 1111101 110001 0101110 111011 0111010 011111 10101110 1111111 1110101 11011 111111 111111 1011101 1100101 11111010 0101101 11101110 111011 110110 111011 1111101 110111 0101110 111011 0111010 011111 10101110 1111111 1110101 11011 10101110 101101 010101 1010111 100111010 101101 1101110 111111 011111 1101001 1111001 010101 0101110 111011 0111010 011111 10101110 1111111 1110101 11011 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 1,687 |
Words | 343 |
Sentences | 15 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 60 |
Lines Amount | 60 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 1,342 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 335 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:43 min read
- 121 Views
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"The Happy Townland" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 24 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/39484/the-happy-townland>.
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