Analysis of A Ghost Story. To The Air Of "Unfortunate Miss Bailey."
Thomas Moore 1779 (Dublin) – 1852 (Bromham)
Not long in bed had Lyndhurst lain,
When, as his lamp burned dimly,
The ghosts of corporate bodies slain,
Stood by his bedside grimly.
Dead aldermen who once could feast,
But now, themselves, are fed on,
And skeletons of mayors deceased,
This doleful chorus led on:--
Oh Lord Lyndhurst,
"Unmerciful Lord Lyndhurst,
"Corpses we,
"All burkt by thee,
"Unmerciful Lord Lyndhurst!"
"Avaunt, ye frights!" his Lordship cried,
"Ye look most glum and whitely."
"Ah, Lyndhurst dear!" the frights replied,
"You've used us unpolitely.
"And now, ungrateful man! to drive
"Dead bodies from your door so,
"Who quite corrupt enough, alive,
"You've made by death still more so.
"Oh, Ex-Chancellor,
"Destructive Ex-Chancellor,
"See thy work,
"Thou second Burke,
"Destructive Ex-Chancellor!"
Bold Lyndhurst then, whom naught could keep
Awake or surely that would,
Cried "Curse you all"--fell fast asleep--
And dreamt of "Small v. Attwood."
While, shockt, the bodies flew downstairs,
But courteous in their panic
Precedence gave to ghosts of mayors,
And corpses aldermanic,
Crying, "Oh, Lord Lyndhurst,
"That terrible Lord Lyndhurst,
"Not Old Scratch
"Himself could match
"That terrible Lord Lyndhurst."
Scheme | ababcdcdeEbbE fbfbghghiIjjI klklxxxjeEmmE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11011101 1111110 011100101 111110 11001111 1101111 010011001 1101011 1110 1110 101 1111 1110 111111 1111010 11010101 1111 01010111 1101111 11010101 1111111 11100 0101100 111 1101 0101100 11011111 0111011 11111101 011111 11010111 11000110 100111110 0101 101110 1100110 111 0111 1100110 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 1,153 |
Words | 191 |
Sentences | 13 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 13, 13, 13 |
Lines Amount | 39 |
Letters per line (avg) | 23 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 303 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 60 |
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 56 sec read
- 7 Views
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"A Ghost Story. To The Air Of "Unfortunate Miss Bailey."" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/56776/a-ghost-story.-to-the-air-of-%22unfortunate-miss-bailey.%22>.
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