Analysis of Australia Infelix
William Gay 1865 (Scotland) – 1897
HOW long, O Lord, shall this, my country, be
A nation of the dead? How long shall they
Who seek their own and live but for the day,
My country hinder from her destiny?
Around me, Lord, I seem again to see
That ancient valley where the dry bones lay,
And ’tis in vain that long I wait and pray
To see them rise to men resolved and free.
Yet sure, O Lord, upon this land of death
At last Thy Spirit will descend with power;
And Thou wilt kindle patriots with Thy breath,
Who, venturing all to win their country’s good,
Shall toil and suffer for the sacred hour
That brings the fullness of her nationhood.
Scheme | ABBAABBACDCEDE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111111101 0101011111 1111011101 1101010100 0111110111 1101010111 0101111101 1111110101 1111011111 11110101110 01110100111 1100111111 11010101010 110101010 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 644 |
Words | 119 |
Sentences | 5 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 466 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 117 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 35 sec read
- 72 Views
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"Australia Infelix" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/40600/australia-infelix>.
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