Analysis of To Canada
Katharine Lee Bates 1859 (Falmouth) – 1929 (Wellesley)
OUR neighbor of the undefended bound,
Friend of the hundred years of peace, our kin,
Fellow adventurer on the enchanted ground
Of the New World, must not the pain within
Our hearts for this wide anguish of the war
Be keenest for your pain? Is not our grief,
That aches with all bereavement, tenderest for
The tragic crimson on your maple-leaf?
Bitter our lot, in this world-clash of faiths,
To stand aloof and bide our hour to serve;
The glorious dead are living; we are wraiths,
Dim watchers of the conflict's changing curve,
Yet proud for human valor, spirit true
In scorn of body, manhood on the crest
Of consecration, dearly proud for you,
Who sped to arms like knighthood to the Quest.
From quaint Quebec to stately Montreal,
Along the rich St. Lawrence, o'er the steep
Roofs of the Rockies rang the bugle-call,
And east and west, deep answering to deep,
Your sons surged forth, the simple, stooping folk
Of shop and wheatfield sprung to hero size
Swiftly as e'er your Northern Lights awoke
To streaming splendor quiet evening skies.
Seek not your lost beneath the tortured sod
Of France and Flanders, where in desperate strife
They battled greatly for the cause of God;
But when above the snow your heavens are rife
With those upleaping lusters, find them there,
Ardors of sacrifice, celestial sign,
Aureole your Angel shall forever wear,
Praising the irresistible Divine.
Scheme | ABABCDCDEFEFGHGHIJIJKLKLMNMNOPOP |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Traditional rhyme |
Metre | 10101011 11010111101 100100100101 1011110101 10111110101 11011111101 111101011 0101011101 10101011111 110101101011 01001110111 110101101 1111010101 011101101 101010111 111111101 110111001 01011101001 1101010101 0101110011 1111010101 110111101 10110110101 1101010101 1111010101 1101010101 1101010111 11010111011 1111111 11100101 10011010101 100010001 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,356 |
Words | 238 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 32 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 1,101 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 236 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:12 min read
- 93 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"To Canada" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/24922/to-canada>.
Discuss this Katharine Lee Bates poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In