To the Superior Animal
Anna Laetitia Waring 1823 (Neath) – 1910
To sum up all, I'm old -- and that's
A fact the years decide;
It is a common thing with cats
And not a thing to hide.
But to feel what it is -- how kind
How true to love and law
For this you must be quite resigned
And not avoid its paw.
It does not come as reckless foe
A shrinking prey to take,
But with soft footstep that we know
By comfort in its wake.
Though it spoils something -- that is true,
Which we must learn to lack
And takes alike from me and you
What never does come back.
It caters for our failing strength
In many a dainty scrap,
And gently lays us at our length
In some secluded lap.
It may bless you -- (I think it should)
Beyond what I make out,
With things perhaps too great and good
For cats to talk about.
Since I find in it blessing free
From all it can destroy,
And so its progress is to me
A miracle of joy.
But my look out to occupy
And make the most of that.
You must be quite as old as I,
If not yourself a Cat!
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:01 min read
- 130 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ KLKL MNMN OPOP |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 918 |
Words | 202 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Translation
Find a translation for this poem in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"To the Superior Animal" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/3066/to-the-superior-animal>.
Discuss the poem To the Superior Animal 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