Analysis of The Scallop Shell
Dora Sigerson Shorter 1866 (Dublin) – 1918
A scallop shell, loosed by the lifting tide,
Had left a friendly shore, the seas to brave;
Its lips of pink and snowy hollow shone
Pure in the sun, a pearl upon the wave.
It gleamed and passed-you burdened it with love,
With sweet long futures, new and dreamy days:
And named for me-because I held your hopes.
I bid you hush-not meriting your praise.
I pointed, where your vessel came to shore,
Wrecked where the tiny breakers rose and fell;
And bid your voyagers not put to sea
So fail a craft as this poor scallop shell.
Scheme | XAXA XBXB XCXC |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain |
Metre | 0101110101 1101010111 1111010101 1001010101 1101110111 1111010101 0111011111 1111110011 1101110111 1101010101 0111001111 1101111101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 517 |
Words | 100 |
Sentences | 4 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 12 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 136 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 33 |
Font size:
Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 30 sec read
- 9 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Scallop Shell" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/54984/the-scallop-shell>.
Discuss this Dora Sigerson Shorter poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In