At Best
John Boyle O'Reilly 1844 (Dowth) – 1890 (Boston)
o
The faithful helm commands the keel,
From port to port fair breezes blow;
But the ship must sail the convex sea,
Nor may she straighter go.
So, man to man; in fair accord,
On thought and will the winds may wait;
But the world will bend the passing word,
Though its shortest course be straight.
From soul to soul the shortest line
At best will bended be:
The ship that holds the straightest course
Still sails the convex sea.
o
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 24 sec read
- 368 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | XABA XCXC XBXB |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 440 |
Words | 83 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4 |
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"At Best" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 4 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/21985/at-best>.
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