A tall, strapping shot, you, considerate hunter...

Boris Pasternak 1890 (Moscow) – 1960 (Peredelkino)



A tall, strapping shot, you, considerate hunter,
Phantom with gun at the flood of my soul,
Do not destroy me now as a traitor,
As fodder for feeling, crumbled up small!

Grant me destruction rising and soaring,
Dress me at night in the willow and ice.
Start me, I pray, from the reeds in the morning,
Finish me off with one shot in my flight,

And for this lofty and resonant parting
Thank you. Forgive me, I kiss you, oh hands
Of my neglected, my disregarded
Homeland, my diffidence, family, friends.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

27 sec read
116

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXAX BXBX BXXX
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 496
Words 93
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4

Boris Pasternak

Boris Leonidovich Pasternak was a Russian poet, novelist, and literary translator. more…

All Boris Pasternak poems | Boris Pasternak Books

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