Analysis of Sonnet IX.

Fernando Pessoa 1888 (Lisbon District) – 1935 (Lisbon)



Oh to be idle loving idleness!
But I am idle all in hate of me;
Ever in action's dream, in the false stress
Of purposed action never set to be.
Like a fierce beast self-penned in a bait-lair,
My will to act binds with excess my action,
Not-acting coils the thought with raged despair,
And acting rage doth paint despair distraction.
Like someone sinking in a treacherous sand,
Each gesture to deliver sinks the more;
The struggle avails not, and to raise no hand,
Though but more slowly useless, we've no power.
Hence live I the dead life each day doth bring,
Repurposed for next day's repurposing.


Scheme ABCBDEDEFGFHII
Poetic Form
Metre 1111010100 1111010111 1001010011 111010111 1011110011 1111111110 1101011101 01011101010 1110001001 1101010101 0101101111 11110101110 1110111111 11111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 585
Words 107
Sentences 5
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 34
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 470
Words per stanza (avg) 107
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Submitted on August 03, 2020

Modified on March 05, 2023

33 sec read
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Fernando Pessoa

Biography of Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935): One of the most prominent modernist poet of the Portuguese language. He was born in Lisbon, Portugal. He published poems under his real name and dozens of other personas. Apart from Fernando Pessoa himself (“ele mesmo”), the most famous ones are: Alberto Caiero, Álvaro de Campos e Ricardo Reis; each one with his own personality, mannerisms and profession: Álvaro de Campos (an engineer, who had been educated in England; influenced by symbolism); Ricardo Reis (a physician, a pastoral poet); Alberto Caieiro (a countryman and poet, who wrote simple verses). more…

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