Analysis of To M.L. Gray,
Eugene Field 1850 (St. Louis) – 1895 (Chicago)
Come, dear old friend, and with us twain
To calm Digentian groves repair;
The turtle coos his sweet refrain
And posies are a-blooming there;
And there the romping Sabine girls
Bind myrtle in their lustrous curls.
I know a certain ilex-tree
Whence leaps a fountain cool and clear.
Its voices summon you and me;
Come, let us haste to share its cheer!
Methinks the rapturous song it sings
Should woo our thoughts from mortal things.
But, good old friend, I charge thee well,
Watch thou my brother all the while,
Lest some fair Lydia cast her spell
Round him unschooled in female guile.
Those damsels have no charms for me;
Guard thou that brother,--I'll guard thee!
And, lo, sweet friend! behold this cup,
Round which the garlands intertwine;
With Massic it is foaming up,
And we would drink to thee and thine.
And of the draught thou shalt partake,
Who lov'st us for our father's sake.
Hark you! from yonder Sabine farm
Echo the songs of long ago,
With power to soothe and grace to charm
What ills humanity may know;
With that sweet music in the air,
'T is Love and Summer everywhere.
So, though no grief consumes our lot
(Since all our lives have been discreet),
Come, in this consecrated spot,
Let's see if pagan cheer be sweet.
Now, then, the songs; but, first, more wine.
The gods be with you, friends of mine!
Scheme | ABABCC DEDEFF GHGHDD IJIJKK LMLMBB NONOJJ |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110111 111101 01011101 0110101 01010011 11001101 1101011 11010101 11010101 11111111 10100111 111011101 11111111 11110101 111100101 111011 1111111 11110111 01110111 1101001 1111101 01111101 01011101 111110101 11110011 10011101 110110111 11010011 11110001 11101010 111101101 111011101 1011001 11110111 11011111 01111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,285 |
Words | 239 |
Sentences | 15 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6 |
Lines Amount | 36 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 170 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 39 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:12 min read
- 108 Views
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"To M.L. Gray," Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 1 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/13127/to-m.l.-gray%2C>.
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