Analysis of The Garden

Edith Nesbit 1858 (Kennington, Surrey ) – 1924 (New Romney, Kent)



CHOKED with ill weeds my garden lay a-dying,
Hard was the ground, no bud had heart to blow,
Yet shone your smile there, with your soft breath sighing:
'Have patience, for some day the flowers will grow.'

Some weeds you killed, you made a plot and tilled it;
'My plot,' you said, 'rich harvest yet shall give,'
With sun-warmed seeds of hope your dear hands filled it,
With rain-soft tears of pity bade them live.

So, weak among the weeds that had withstood you,
One little pure white flower grew by-and-by;
You could not pluck my flower--alas! how should you?
You sowed the seed, but let the blossom die.


Scheme ABAB CXCX DEDE
Poetic Form Quatrain  (67%)
Metre 11111101010 1101111111 11111111110 11011101011 11111101011 1111110111 11111111111 1111110111 11010111011 11011101101 111111001111 1101110101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 611
Words 114
Sentences 6
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 12
Letters per line (avg) 38
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 154
Words per stanza (avg) 36
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 14, 2023

33 sec read
263

Edith Nesbit

Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland) was an English author and poet; she published her books for children under the name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 books of children's literature. She was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, a socialist organisation later affiliated to the Labour Party. more…

All Edith Nesbit poems | Edith Nesbit Books

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