Analysis of When I Behold The Lark
Bernard de Ventadorn 1135 – 1194
When I behold the lark upspring
To meet the bright sun joyfully,
How he forgets to poise his wing
In his gay spirit's revelry,
Alas! that mournful thoughts should spring
E'en from that happy songster's glee!
Strange, that such gladdening sight should bring
Not joy, but pining care to me!
I thought my heart had known the whole
Of love, but small its knowledge proved.
For still the more my longing soul
Loves on, itself the while unloved:
She stole my heart, myself she stole,
And all I prized from me removed;
She left me but the fierce control
Of vain desires for her I loved.
All self-command is now gone by,
E'er since the luckless hour when she
Became a mirror to my eye,
Whereon I gazed complacently.
Thou fatal mirror! there I spy
Love's image; and my doom shall be,
Like young Narcissus, thus to sigh,
And thus expire, beholding thee.
Scheme | ABABABAB CDCECDCE FBFBFBFB |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101011 11011100 11011111 01110100 01110111 11111011 1111111 11110111 11111101 11111101 11011101 11010101 1111111 01111101 11110101 110101011 11011111 1010101011 01010111 1110100 11010111 11001111 11010111 01010101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 829 |
Words | 155 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 220 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 51 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 28, 2023
- 48 sec read
- 133 Views
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