The Wanderers Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABBCDEFFGGDEAHIHIIJC JKLKDKDMLMEAAENNN OPP QRPRQPSSS TUVVUVWXWXYPYPYZA2B2 A2A2A2A2A2Over the sea our galleys went | A |
With cleaving prows in order brave | B |
To a speeding wind and a bounding wave | B |
A gallant armament | C |
Each bark built out of a forest tree | D |
Left leafy and rough as first it grew | E |
And nail'd all over the gaping sides | F |
Within and without with black bull hides | F |
Seethed in fat and suppled in flame | G |
To bear the playful billows' game | G |
So each good ship was rude to see | D |
Rude and bare to the outward view | E |
But each upbore a stately tent | A |
Where cedar pales in scented row | H |
Kept out the flakes of the dancing brine | I |
And an awning droop'd the mast below | H |
In fold on fold of the purple fine | I |
That neither noontide nor star shine | I |
Nor moonlight cold which maketh mad | J |
Might pierce the regal tenement | C |
When the sun dawn'd O gay and glad | J |
We set the sail and plied the oar | K |
But when the night wind blew like breath | L |
For joy of one day's voyage more | K |
We sang together on the wide sea | D |
Like men at peace on a peaceful shore | K |
Each sail was loosed to the wind so free | D |
Each helm made sure by the twilight star | M |
And in a sleep as calm as death | L |
We the voyagers from afar | M |
Lay stretch'd along each weary crew | E |
In a circle round its wondrous tent | A |
Whence gleam'd soft light and curl'd rich scent | A |
And with light and perfume music too | E |
So the stars wheel'd round and the darkness past | N |
And at morn we started beside the mast | N |
And still each ship was sailing fast | N |
- | |
Now one morn land appear'd a speck | O |
Dim trembling betwixt sea and sky | P |
'Avoid it ' cried our pilot 'check | P |
The shout restrain the eager eye ' | - |
But the heaving sea was black behind | Q |
For many a night and many a day | R |
And land though but a rock drew nigh | P |
So we broke the cedar pales away | R |
Let the purple awning flap in the wind | Q |
And a statue bright was on every deck | P |
We shouted every man of us | S |
And steer'd right into the harbour thus | S |
With pomp and p an glorious | S |
- | |
A hundred shapes of lucid stone | T |
All day we built its shrine for each | U |
A shrine of rock for ever one | V |
Nor paused till in the westering sun | V |
We sat together on the beach | U |
To sing because our task was done | V |
When lo what shouts and merry songs | W |
What laughter all the distance stirs | X |
A loaded raft with happy throngs | W |
Of gentle islanders | X |
'Our isles are just at hand ' they cried | Y |
'Like cloudlets faint in even sleeping | P |
Our temple gates are open'd wide | Y |
Our olive groves thick shade are keeping | P |
For these majestic forms' they cried | Y |
O then we awoke with sudden start | Z |
From our deep dream and knew too late | A2 |
How bare the rock how desolate | B2 |
Which had received our precious freight | A2 |
Yet we call'd out 'Depart | A2 |
Our gifts once given must here abide | A2 |
Our work is done we have no heart | A2 |
To mar our work ' we cried | A2 |
Robert Browning
(1)
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