Analysis of What Says the Sea, Little Shell?
Stephen Crane 1871 – 1900
"What says the sea, little shell?
What says the sea?
Long has our brother been silent to us,
Kept his message for the ships,
Awkward ships, stupid ships."
"The sea bids you mourn, O Pines,
Sing low in the moonlight.
He sends tale of the land of doom,
Of place where endless falls
A rain of women's tears,
And men in grey robes --
Men in grey robes --
Chant the unknown pain."
"What says the sea, little shell?
What says the sea?
Long has our brother been silent to us,
Kept his message for the ships,
Puny ships, silly ships."
"The sea bids you teach, O Pines,
Sing low in the moonlight;
Teach the gold of patience,
Cry gospel of gentle hands,
Cry a brotherhood of hearts.
The sea bids you teach, O Pines."
"And where is the reward, little shell?
What says the sea?
Long has our brother been silent to us,
Kept his message for the ships,
Puny ships, silly ships."
"No word says the sea, O Pines,
No word says the sea.
Long will your brother be silent to you,
Keep his message for the ships,
O puny pines, silly pines."
Scheme | ABCDd eFxxxggx ABCDD EFxxxE aBCDD ebxde |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101101 1101 11101011011 1110101 101101 0111111 11001 11110111 111101 011101 01011 1011 10011 1101101 1101 11101011011 1110101 101101 0111111 11001 101110 1101101 101011 0111111 011001101 1101 11101011011 1110101 101101 1110111 11101 1111011011 1110101 1101101 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 1,026 |
Words | 203 |
Sentences | 16 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 8, 5, 6, 5, 5 |
Lines Amount | 34 |
Letters per line (avg) | 23 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 128 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 33 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 59 sec read
- 48 Views
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"What Says the Sea, Little Shell?" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/43497/what-says-the-sea%2C-little-shell%3F>.
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