Analysis of Limitations
Henrietta Cordelia Ray 1852 (New York City) – 1916 (New York City)
The subtlest strain a great musician weaves,
Cannot attain in rhythmic harmony
To music in his soul. May it not be
Celestial lyres send hints to him? He grieves
That half the sweetness of the song, he leaves
Unheard in the transition. Thus do we
Yearn to translate the wondrous majesty
Of some rare mood, when the rapt soul receives
A vision exquisite. Yet who can match
The sunset’s iridescent hues? Who sing
The skylark’s ecstasy so seraph-fine?
We struggle vainly, still we fain would catch
Such rifts amid life’s shadows, for they bring
Glimpses ineffable of things divine.
| Scheme | ABBAABBACDECDE |
|---|---|
| Poetic Form | |
| Metre | 011010101 1001010100 1100111111 0101111111 1101010111 0100010111 1101010100 1111101101 0101001111 01010111 01100111 1101011111 110111111 1001001101 |
| Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
| Characters | 570 |
| Words | 99 |
| Sentences | 7 |
| Stanzas | 1 |
| Stanza Lengths | 14 |
| Lines Amount | 14 |
| Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
| Words per line (avg) | 7 |
| Letters per stanza (avg) | 463 |
| Words per stanza (avg) | 99 |
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"Limitations" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 6 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/54099/limitations>.
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