Analysis of If We Were Young Men
If we were young men
if we were strong
If we had fresh words
to add to our song
If we were soldiers
with war in our veins
If we were poets
our voices reclaimed
If we were lovers
of women that cried
If we went wandering
our heart’s reapplied
If we were statesmen
the world in our grasp
If we were sailors
the wind at our backs
If we were farmers
with meadows so green
If we were actors
on stages supreme
If we were hunters
new wolf on the prowl
If we were dreamers
all wishes allowed
If we were young men
still facing the sun
But alas, we are old
—and darkness has come
(Villanova Pennsylvania: February, 2016)
Scheme | Ab xb cx xd cx xd xx cx cx cx cx cx Ax xx x |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11011 1101 11111 111101 11010 110101 11010 101001 11010 11011 111100 1011 11010 010101 11010 011101 11010 1111 11010 11001 11010 11101 11010 11001 11011 11001 101111 01011 010010100 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 612 |
Words | 121 |
Sentences | 1 |
Stanzas | 15 |
Stanza Lengths | 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1 |
Lines Amount | 29 |
Letters per line (avg) | 17 |
Words per line (avg) | 4 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 32 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 8 |
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"If We Were Young Men" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/47112/if-we-were-young-men>.
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