Analysis of The Mine-Sweepers

Rudyard Kipling 1865 (Mumbai) – 1936 (London)



Dawn off the Foreland -- the young flood making
Jumbled and short and steep --
Black in the hollows and bright where it's breaking --
Awkward water to sweep.
"Mines reported in the fairway,
Warn all traffic and detain.
Sent up Unity, Claribel, Assyrian, Stormcock, and Golden Gain."

Noon off the Foreland -- the first ebb making
Lumpy and strong in the bight.
Boom after boom, and the golf-hut shaking
And the jackdaws wild with fright.
"Mines located in the fairway,
Boats now working up the chain,
Sweepers -- Unity, Claribel, Assyrian, Stormcock, and Golden Gain."

Dusk off the Foreland -- the last light going
And the traffic crowding through,
And five damned trawlers with their syreens blowing
Heading the whole review!
"Sweep completed in the fairway,
No more mines remain.
Sent back Unity, Claribel, Assyrian, Stormcock, and Golden Gain."


Scheme ABABCDD AEAECDD AFAFCDD
Poetic Form
Metre 110101110 100101 10010011110 101011 110001 1110001 1110010010010101 110101110 1001001 1101001110 001111 110001 1110101 1010010010010101 110101110 0010101 0111011110 10011 1010001 11101 1110010010010101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 854
Words 145
Sentences 10
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 7, 7, 7
Lines Amount 21
Letters per line (avg) 31
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 220
Words per stanza (avg) 47
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 29, 2023

42 sec read
160

Rudyard Kipling

Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English short-story writer, poet, and novelist chiefly remembered for his tales and poems of British soldiers in India and his tales for children. more…

All Rudyard Kipling poems | Rudyard Kipling Books

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