Lethe
Hilda Doolittle 1886 (Bethlehem, Pennsylvania) – 1961 (Zurich)
NOR skin nor hide nor fleece
Shall cover you,
Nor curtain of crimson nor fine
Shelter of cedar-wood be over you,
Nor the fir-tree
Nor the pine.
Nor sight of whin nor gorse
Nor river-yew,
Nor fragrance of flowering bush,
Nor wailing of reed-bird to waken you,
Nor of linnet,
Nor of thrush.
Nor word nor touch nor sight
Of lover, you
Shall long through the night but for this:
The roll of the full tide to cover you
Without question,
Without kiss.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 31, 2023
- 25 sec read
- 65 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABCBXC ABXBXX XBDBXD |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 438 |
Words | 85 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 6, 6 |
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"Lethe" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 12 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/19272/lethe>.
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