Analysis of Transition

Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)



Too long and quickly have I lived to vow
The woe that stretches me shall never wane,
Too often seen the end of endless pain
To swear that peace no more shall cool my brow.
I know, I know- again the shriveled bough
Will burgeon sweetly in the gentle rain,
And these hard lands be quivering with grain-
I tell you only: it is Winter now.

What if I know, before the Summer goes
Where dwelt this bitter frenzy shall be rest?
What is it now, that June shall surely bring
New promise, with the swallow and the rose?
My heart is water, that I first must breast
The terrible, slow loveliness of Spring.


Scheme ABBAABBA CDECDE
Poetic Form Petrarchan sonnet 
Metre 1101011111 0111011101 1101011101 1111111111 1111010101 1101000101 0111110011 1111011101 1111010101 1111010111 1111111101 1101010001 1111011111 01001111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 589
Words 116
Sentences 6
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 8, 6
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 33
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 233
Words per stanza (avg) 57
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 16, 2023

34 sec read
152

Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. more…

All Dorothy Parker poems | Dorothy Parker Books

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