The Trenches



They held with horrid hell their lines
'Til shells dispelled their noxious fumes,
Then through the labyrinth there fell
A myriad to Earth's grey womb.

A thousand summers 'ere that day
Those fruitful fields were green and bloom—
What once were luscious, lovely plains
Are now a wasteland and a tomb.

About this poem

This short poem came to me after having finished a study on the excessive and otherworldly violence and destruction that was World War I. What soul could possibly imagine it?

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Submitted by Vixility on September 03, 2022

Modified on March 05, 2023

16 sec read
20

Quick analysis:

Scheme XXXA XAXA
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 301
Words 54
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 4, 4

John W. May

John W. May has lived in Colorado all his life. He currently works in the field of ophthalmology and loves to mountain bike and read about history. John first became a lover of poetry in 2008 after having read a poem by John Milton. He has been reading and studying the works of various poets since. His favorite poets are Emily Dickinson, Fyodor Tyutchev and W. B. Yeats. more…

All John W. May poems | John W. May Books

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1 Comment
  • nfowke
    Deeply thought provoking!
    LikeReply7 months ago

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"The Trenches" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/135203/the-trenches>.

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