Analysis of A Christmas Carol

Christina Rossetti 1830 (London) – 1894 (London)



In the bleak mid-winter
   Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
   Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
   Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
   Long ago.

Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him
   Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
   When He comes to reign:
In the bleak midwinter
   A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty
   Jesus Christ.

Enough for Him, whom cherubim
   Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk
   And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels
   Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
   Which adore.

Angels and archangels
   May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
   Thronged the air;
But only His mother
   In her maiden bliss
Worshipped the Beloved
   With a kiss.

What can I give Him,
   Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
   I would bring a lamb,
If I were a Wise Man
   I would do my part,—
Yet what I can I give Him,
   Give my heart.


Scheme AbxbccAc defeagxg dfxfhixi hjdjakxk dlxlxmdm
Poetic Form Tetractys  (35%)
Etheree  (33%)
Metre 001110 10111 111110 10101 1110111 111 001110 101 101101011 1101 10011101 11111 001110 010101 011010 101 011111 10101 0111 00111 0111110 1101 0101010 101 10010 11101 101 101 110110 00101 10001 101 11111 1111 110010 11101 110011 11111 1111111 111
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 892
Words 167
Sentences 6
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 40
Letters per line (avg) 17
Words per line (avg) 4
Letters per stanza (avg) 135
Words per stanza (avg) 33
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Submitted by naama on July 15, 2020

Modified on March 05, 2023

50 sec read
82

Christina Rossetti

Christina Georgina Rossetti (5 December 1830 – 29 December 1894) was an English poet who wrote various romantic, devotional, and children's poems. more…

All Christina Rossetti poems | Christina Rossetti Books

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