Analysis of Lament For The Death Of Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill.
Thomas Osborne Davis 1814 (Mallow, County Cork) – 1845 (Dublin)
"Did they dare, did they dare, to slay Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill?"
"Yes, they slew with poison him they feared to meet with steel."
"May God wither up their hearts! May their blood cease to flow!
May they walk in living death, who poisoned Eoghan Ruadh!"
"Though it break my heart to hear, say again the bitter words.
From Derry, against Cromwell, he marched to measure swords:
But the weapon of the Sacsanach met him on his way,
And he died at Cloch Uachtar,upon St. Leonard's day.
"Wail, wail ye for the Mighty One! Wail, wail ye for the Dead!
Quench the hearth, and hold the breath--with ashes strew the head.
How tenderly we loved him! How deeply we deplore!
Holy Saviour! but to think we shall never see him more.
"Sagest in the council was he, kindest in the hall!
Sure we never won a battle--'twas Eoghan won them all.
Had he lived--had he lived--our dear country had been free;
But he's dead, but he's dead, and 'tis slaves we'll ever be.
"O'Farrell and Clanrickarde, Preston and Red Hugh,
Audley and MacMahon, ye are valiant, wise, and true;
But--what, what are ye all to our darling who is gone?
The Rudder of our Ship was he, our Castle's corner stone!
"Wail, wail him through the Island! Weep, weep for our pride!
Would that on the battle-field our gallant chief had died!
Weep the Victor of Beann-bhorbh--weep him, young men and old;
Weep for him, ye women--your Beautiful lies cold!
"We thought you would not die--we were sure you would not go,
And leave us in our utmost need to Cromwell's cruel blow--
Sheep without a shepherd, when the snow shuts out the sky--
Oh! why did you leave us, Eoghan? Why did you die?
"Soft as woman's was your voice, O'Neill! bright was your eye,
Oh! why did you leave us, Eoghan? Why did you die?
Your troubles are all over, you're at rest with God on high,
But we're slaves, and we're orphans, Eoghan!--why didst thou die?"
Scheme | aabc xxxc ccdd eeff ggxx cccc bbhC hChc |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (63%) |
Metre | 111111111101 1111101111111 1110111111111 111010111011 11111111010101 1100110111101 101010111111 0111111101 11110101111101 1010101110101 1100111110101 1011111110111 100101110001 1110101011111 11111110110111 1111110111101 0100110011 10011110101 11111111010111 0101101111010101 1111010111101 11101011010111 1010111111101 111110110011 1111111011111 01101011110101 1010101011101 11111111111 1110111011111 11111111111 11011101111111 111011011111 |
Closest metre | Iambic heptameter |
Characters | 1,926 |
Words | 374 |
Sentences | 42 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 44 |
Words per line (avg) | 11 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 175 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 42 |
Font size:
Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:55 min read
- 12 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Lament For The Death Of Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/56804/lament-for-the-death-of-eoghan-ruadh-o%27neill.>.
Discuss this Thomas Osborne Davis 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