Analysis of Success Alone Seen
Letitia Elizabeth Landon 1802 (Chelsea) – 1838 (Cape Coast)
Few know of life's beginnings — men behold
The goal achieved. The warrior, when his sword
Flashes red triumph in the noonday sun ;
The poet, when his lyre hangs on the palm ;
The statesman, when the crowd proclaim his voice,
And mould opinion on his gifted tongue :
They count not life's first steps, and never think
Upon the many miserable hours
When hope deferred was sickness to the heart.
They reckon not the battle and the march,
The long privations of a wasted youth ;
They never see the banner till unfurled.
What are to them the solitary nights,
Past pale and anxious by the sickly lamp,
Till the young poet wins the world at last,
To listen to the music long his own ?
The crowd attend the statesman's fiery mind
That makes their destiny ; but they do not trace
Its struggle, or its long expectancy.
Hard are life's early steps ; and, but that youth
Is buoyant, confident, and strong in hope,
Men would behold its threshold, and despair.
Scheme | ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSKTU |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111010101 01010100111 101100011 0101111101 0101010111 0101011101 1111110101 01010100010 1101110101 1101010001 0101010101 1101010101 111101001 1101010101 1011010111 1101010111 01010101001 11110011111 1101110100 1111010111 1101000101 110111001 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 948 |
Words | 168 |
Sentences | 6 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 22 |
Lines Amount | 22 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 740 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 175 |
Font size:
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Success Alone Seen" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/44850/success-alone-seen>.
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