Analysis of Fairmount



How calm the sound of snow that's falling
   Soft upon these lonely stones—
As if the north winds now were calling
   Sleeping ghosts from restless bones.

Some think this yard of graves as eerie,
   Filled with silence and with woes:
Where souls departed wander weary,
   Chained to earth and seen by crows.

I've seen some come with flowers weeping,
   Doubting God as they lament;
While others deemed the dead as sleeping,
   Waiting for the Lord's advent.

And some would do the most appalling—
   Cracking headstones, tagging hate.
Yet still the snow would be there falling,
   Falling calmly on our fate.


Scheme ABAB CDCD AEAE AFAF
Poetic Form
Metre 110111110 1011101 110111010 1011101 111111110 1110011 110101010 1110111 111111010 1011101 110101110 101011 011101010 101101 110111110 10101101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 630
Words 122
Sentences 5
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 16
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 117
Words per stanza (avg) 27

About this poem

I was home and the weather outside produced thick flakes of slowly descending snow. It was very peaceful. For some reason or another I was thinking about Fairmount, one of Denver's largest cemeteries, and one of its oldest. The mood of the moment felt very serene and conducive to writing, and so I started with a line about descending snow which wove itself into a poem about a graveyard and death's inevitablity.

Font size:
 

Submitted by Vixility on July 09, 2023

Modified by Vixility on July 09, 2023

37 sec read
21

John W. May

John W. May has lived in Colorado all his life. He currently works in the field of ophthalmology and loves to mountain bike and read about history. John first became a lover of poetry in 2008 after having read a poem by John Milton. He has been reading and studying the works of various poets since. His favorite poets are Emily Dickinson, Fyodor Tyutchev and W. B. Yeats. more…

All John W. May poems | John W. May Books

44 fans

Discuss this John W. May poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Fairmount" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Dec. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/164170/fairmount>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    December 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    9
    days
    20
    hours
    30
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    AA Milne wrote: "A bear, however hard he tries..."
    A "has very very tired eyes"
    B "grows tubby with no exercise"
    C "can never stop telling lies"
    D "stinks and attracts the flies"