July Fourth By The Ocean

Robinson Jeffers 1887 (Allegheny) – 1962 (Carmel-by-the-Sea)



The continent's a tamed ox, with all its mountains,
Powerful and servile; here is for plowland, here is
     for park and playground, this helpless
Cataract for power; it lies behind us at heel
All docile between this ocean and the other. If
     flood troubles the lowlands, or earthquake
Cracks walls, it is only a slave's blunder or the
     natural
Shudder of a new made slave. Therefore we happy
     masters about the solstice
Light bonfires on the shore and celebrate our power.
The bay's necklaced with fire, the bombs make crystal
     fountains in the air, the rockets
Shower swan's-neck over the night water.... I
     imagined
The stars drew apart a little as if from troublesome
     children, coldly compassionate;
But the ocean neither seemed astonished nor in awe:
If this had been the little sea that Xerxes whipped,
     how it would have feared us.

Submitted by Holt

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

45 sec read
90

Quick analysis:

Scheme XXAXXXXBXXXBXXXXXXXA X
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 873
Words 147
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 20, 1

Robinson Jeffers

John Robinson Jeffers was an American poet, known for his work about the central California coast. more…

All Robinson Jeffers poems | Robinson Jeffers Books

2 fans

Discuss the poem July Fourth By The Ocean with the community...

0 Comments

    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

    "July Fourth By The Ocean" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/32814/july-fourth-by-the-ocean>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    15
    hours
    51
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the nonsense poem Jabberwocky?
    A Lewis Carroll
    B Ogden Nash
    C Edward Lear
    D Spike Milligan