Analysis of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy
Letitia Elizabeth Landon 1802 (Chelsea) – 1838 (Cape Coast)
A Sketch from the Arabian nights.
ON he past
Through the strange cavern : still a distant sound
Of music led him on ; and still a light,
A faint and lovely light, played o'er his way,
And shewed the walls, where ev'ry gem of earth
Shone with the hues of heaven : deeply blue,
The sapphire softened the red ruby's blaze ;
The ethereal diamond and green emerald
Made it seem like the palace of a king.
Still follow'd the young prince the graceful light,
That like a spirit danced before his path ;
At last, a fresher air passed o'er his brow —
Fresh, but as sweet as if its course had been
Over a thousand roses ; and the flame,
His sparkling guide, vanish'd when the clear sky,
Fountains, and trees, and flow'rs grew visible.
And Ahmed saw a lovely garden spread,
As if it were the Summer's favourite home ;
The turf was like a Persian carpet, dight
With myriads of gay colours ; and rich beds
Of tulips, earth's bright rainbows, seemed to hold
Divided wealth with the gold amaranth.
Kings of the solitude, gigantic palms,
Held shadowy empire, and like lovers hung
Over the delicate acacia's boughs,
Which guarded in their turn blue violets,
Lying like clouds earth-dropt beneath their shade.
Around were marble fountains, and their spray,
A silver shower, fell o'er the scented shrubs,
Making exchange of freshness for their odours.
There the birds nestled thickest, with their wings
Shining like Indian stones, and each soft throat
Tuned like a separate lute. At the far end,
Mirrored in the clear crystal of the lake,
Arose the garden's wonder, the bright palace,
All glorious, with its purple towers, like those
The evening clouds build for the setting sun. —
He entered one rich hall ; his dazzled sight
Sank in the splendour. Pearl and ruby shafts
Supported the high dome, where amber gave
Its fragrance forth ; incense and precious woods
Shed their sweet influence, and music's sound —
Lutes and soft voices mingled — met his ear ;
And beautiful young forms were floating round
The gorgeous throne whereon the fairy sat,
Like waving clouds about the lovely moon.
She rose, their radiant mistress, and flung back
The ebon tresses from her marble brow ;
And Ahmed gaz'd upon the large dark eyes
That welcom'd him : — a smile, a timid blush,
Were on her cheek — they told the tale of love.
Scheme | A BCDEXXXXXDXFXXXXXXBXXXXXXXXEXAXXXXXXXDXXXCXCXXXFXXX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 011001001 111 1011010101 1101110101 01010111011 010111111 1101110101 01001001101 00100100110 1111010101 1100110101 1101010111 11010111011 1111111111 1001010001 1101101011 1001011100 0101010101 111001011 0111010101 11111011 110111111 010110110 110100101 110010001101 10010011 1100111100 1011110111 0101010011 010101100101 1001110111 1011010111 10110010111 1101011011 1000110101 01010100110 110011101011 0101110101 1101111101 100110101 0100111101 1101010101 1111000101 1011010111 0100110101 010110101 1101010101 11110010011 011010101 0101010111 1101010101 0101110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,345 |
Words | 399 |
Sentences | 11 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 51 |
Lines Amount | 52 |
Letters per line (avg) | 35 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 897 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 206 |
Font size:
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Prince Ahmed and the Fairy" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/44715/prince-ahmed-and-the-fairy>.
Discuss this Letitia Elizabeth Landon 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