Analysis of An Acrostic.
Ah! what is this life? It's a dream, is the reply;
Like a dream that's soon ended, so life passes by.
Pursue the thought further, still there's likeness in each,
How constant our aim is at what we can't reach.
E'en so in a dream, we've some object in view
Unceasingly aimed at, but the thing we pursue
Still eludes our fond grasp, and yet lures us on too.
How analagous this to our waking day hours,
Unwearied our efforts, we tax all our powers;
Betimes in the morning the prize we pursue,
By the pale lamp of midnight we're seeking it too;
At all times and seasons, this same fancied good
Repels our advances, yet still is pursued,
Depriving us oft, of rest needful, and food.
But there's a pearl of great price, whose worth is untold,
It can never he purchased with silver or gold;
Great peace it confers upon all to whom given,
Ever cheering their pathway, and pointing to heaven.
Look not to this world for a prize of such worth,
Or hope that to obtain from this perishing earth
Whose essence is spiritual, and heavenly its birth.
Weston, June 6, 1862.
Scheme | AABBCCC DDCCXEEFFGGHHH X |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 111111011001 101111011101 010110111001 110101111111 111001111001 111101101 1011011011111 11111010110 110101111010 1001001101 10111111011 11101011101 011001011101 01011111001 110111111101 111011011011 111010111110 101011010110 11111101111 111101111001 11011000010011 101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,043 |
Words | 198 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 14, 1 |
Lines Amount | 22 |
Letters per line (avg) | 37 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 272 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 65 |
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:01 min read
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"An Acrostic." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 11 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/56155/an-acrostic.>.
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