Analysis of A Blue Valentine
Alfred Joyce Kilmer 1886 (New Brunswick, New Jersey) – 1918 (near Seringes-et-Nesles, Marne)
Monsignore,
Right Reverend Bishop Valentinus,
Sometime of Interamna, which is called Ferni,
Now of the delightful Court of Heaven,
I respectfully salute you,
I genuflect
And I kiss your episcopal ring.
It is not, Monsignore,
The fragrant memory of your holy life,
Nor that of your shining and joyous martyrdom,
Which causes me now to address you.
But since this is your august festival, Monsignore,
It seems appropriate to me to state
According to a venerable and agreeable custom,
That I love a beautiful lady.
Her eyes, Monsignore,
Are so blue that they put lovely little blue reflections
On everything that she looks at,
Such as a wall
Or the moon
Or my heart.
It is like the light coming through blue stained glass,
Yet not quite like it,
For the blueness is not transparent,
Only translucent.
Her soul's light shines through,
But her soul cannot be seen.
It is something elusive, whimsical, tender, wanton, infantile, wise
And noble.
She wears, Monsignore, a blue garment,
Made in the manner of the Japanese.
It is very blue --
I think that her eyes have made it more blue,
Sweetly staining it
As the pressure of her body has graciously given it form.
Loving her, Monsignore,
I love all her attributes;
But I believe
That even if I did not love her
I would love the blueness of her eyes,
And her blue garment, made in the manner of the Japanese.
Monsignore,
I have never before troubled you with a request.
The saints whose ears I chiefly worry with my pleas are the most exquisite and maternal Brigid,
Gallant Saint Stephen, who puts fire in my blood,
And your brother bishop, my patron,
The generous and jovial Saint Nicholas of Bari.
But, of your courtesy, Monsignore,
Do me this favour:
When you this morning make your way
To the Ivory Throne that bursts into bloom with roses because of her who sits upon it,
When you come to pay your devoir to Our Lady,
I beg you, say to her:
"Madame, a poor poet, one of your singing servants yet on earth,
Has asked me to say that at this moment he is especially grateful to you
For wearing a blue gown."
Scheme | Abccdex axfdaefeabexcebeeeacbxebddexabxabb Aeeecaaaxeeaxdc |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1 1100101 1111111 1100101110 10100011 11 011101001 1111 01010011101 111110010100 11011111 11111101001 1101001111 0101010000010010 111010010 011 11111110101010 1101111 1101 101 111 11101101111 11111 101011010 10010 01111 1011011 111001010010101001 010 1110110 100101001 11101 1110111111 10101 1010101011001011 1001 111010 1101 110111110 111010101 00110100101001 1 1110011011001 01111101011110110000101 101101110011 011010110 010001001100110 1111001 1111 11110111 10100111011110011011011 111111111010 111110 1001101111010111 1111111110110101011 110011 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,002 |
Words | 373 |
Sentences | 14 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 34, 15 |
Lines Amount | 56 |
Letters per line (avg) | 29 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 538 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 123 |
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:52 min read
- 11 Views
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"A Blue Valentine" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/54680/a-blue-valentine>.
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