On The Tower Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: A BC DE FGHID JKLM JN OPDQMRST U VWX WYWD Z WA2W B2WQWT WQ C2XD XB2 W WZ D2 TWE2F2WG2Y WLW W D BWXIWC2OH2I2XVJ2K2L2 WSWIDWIWWIM2N2O2III2 C2I2WP2Q2IW C2WXV R2 I C2IDWS2IIIWIW W X WT2 I2IIII W U2V2W2V2 QIQ X2IW QIQI QWQW WWY2 C2W DI P2 WY W S2 Z2W W EA3 Z2W EI QI XA play in one act | A |
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The Knight | B |
The Lady | C |
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Voices of men and women on the ground at the foot of the tower | D |
The voice of the Knight's Page | E |
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The top of a high battlemented tower of a castle A stone ledge | F |
which serves as a seat extends part way around the parapet | G |
Small clouds float by in the blue sky and occasionally a swallow passes | H |
Entrance R from an unseen stairway which is supposed to extend around | I |
the outside of the tower | D |
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The Lady unseen | J |
Oh do not climb so fast for I am faint | K |
With looking down the tower to where the earth | L |
Lies dreaming in the sun I fear to fall | M |
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The Knight unseen | J |
Lean on me love my love and look not down | N |
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L | - |
Call me not love call me your conquered foe | O |
That now since you have battered down her gates | P |
Gives you the keys that lock the highest tower | D |
And mounts with you to prove her homage true | Q |
Oh bid me go no farther lest I fall | M |
My foot has slipped upon the rain worn stones | R |
Why are the stairs so narrow and so steep | S |
Let us go back my lord | T |
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K | - |
Are you afraid | U |
Who were so dauntless till the walls gave way | - |
Courage my sweet I would that I could climb | V |
A thousand times by wind swept stairs like these | W |
That lead so near to heaven | X |
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L | - |
Sir you may | - |
You are a knight and very valorous | W |
I am a woman I shall never come | Y |
This way but once | W |
The Knight and the Lady appear on the top of the tower | D |
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K | - |
Kiss me at last my love | Z |
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L | - |
Oh my sweet lord I am too tired to kiss | W |
Look how the earth is like an emerald | A2 |
With rivers veined and flawed with fallow fields | W |
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K Lifting her veil | B2 |
Then I kiss you a thousand thousand kisses | W |
For all the days ere I had won to you | Q |
Beyond the walls and gates you barred so close | W |
Call me at last your love your castle's lord | T |
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L After a pause | W |
I love you | Q |
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She kisses him Her veil blows away like a white butterfly | C2 |
over the parapet Faint cries and laughter from men and women | X |
under the tower | D |
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Men and Women | X |
The veil the lady's veil | B2 |
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The knight takes the lady in his arms | W |
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L | - |
My lord I pray you loose me from your arms | W |
Lest that my people see how much we love | Z |
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K | - |
May they not see us All of them have loved | D2 |
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L | - |
But you have been an enemy my lord | T |
With walls between us and with moss grown moats | W |
Now on a sudden must I kiss your mouth | E2 |
I who was taught before I learned to speak | F2 |
That all my house was hostile unto yours | W |
Now can I put my head against your breast | G2 |
Here in the sight of all who choose to come | Y |
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K | - |
Are we not past the caring for their eyes | W |
And nearer to the heaven than to earth | L |
Look up and see | W |
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L | - |
I only see your face | W |
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She touches his hair with her hands Murmuring under the tower | D |
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K | - |
Why came we here in all the noon day light | B |
With only darting swallows over us | W |
To make a speck of darkness on the sun | X |
Let us go down where walls will shut us round | I |
Your castle has a hundred quiet halls | W |
A hundred chambers where the shadows lie | C2 |
On things put by forgotten long ago | O |
Forgotten lutes with strings that Time has slackened | H2 |
We two shall draw them close and bid them sing | I2 |
Forgotten games forgotten books still open | X |
Where you had laid them by at vesper time | V |
And your embroidery whereon half worked | J2 |
Weeps Amor wounded by a rose's thorn | K2 |
Shall I not see the room in which you slept | L2 |
Palpitant still and breathing of your thoughts | W |
Where maiden dreams adown the ways of sleep | S |
Swept noiselessly with damosels and knights | W |
To tourneys where the trumpet made no sound | I |
Blow as he might the scarlet trumpeter | D |
And were the dreams not sometimes brimmed with tears | W |
That waked you when the night was loneliest | I |
Will you not bring me to your oratory | W |
Where prayers arose like little birds set free | W |
Still upward upward without sound of flight | I |
Shall I not find your turrets toward the north | M2 |
Where you defied white winter armed for war | N2 |
Your southern casements where the sun blows in | O2 |
Between the leaf bent boughs the wind has lifted | I |
Shall we not see the sunrise toward the east | I |
Watch dawn by dawn the rose of day unfolding | I2 |
Its golden hearted beauty sovereignly | C2 |
And toward the west look quietly at evening | I2 |
Shall I not see all these and all your treasures | W |
In carven coffers hidden in the dark | P2 |
Have you not laid a sapphire lit with flame | Q2 |
And amethysts set round with deep wrought gold | I |
Perhaps a ruby | W |
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L | C2 |
All my gems are yours | W |
And all my chambers curtained from the sun | X |
My lord shall see them all in time in time | V |
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The sun begins to sink | R2 |
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K | - |
Shall I not see them now To day to night | I |
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L | C2 |
How could I show you in one day my lord | I |
My castle and my treasures and my tower | D |
Let all the days to come suffice for this | W |
Since all the past days made them what they are | S2 |
You will not be impatient my sweet lord | I |
Some of the halls have long been locked and barred | I |
And some have secret doors and hard to find | I |
Till suddenly you touch them unawares | W |
And down a sable way runs silver light | I |
We two will search together for the keys | W |
But not to day Let us sit here to day | - |
Since all is yours and always will be yours | W |
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The stars appear faintly one by one | X |
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K After a pause | W |
I grow a little drowsy with the dusk | T2 |
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L Singing | I2 |
There was a man that loved a maid | I |
Sleep and take your rest | I |
Over her lips his kiss was laid | I |
Over her heart his breast | I |
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The knight sleeps | W |
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All of his vows were sweet to hear | U2 |
Sweet was his kiss to take | V2 |
Why was her breast so quick to fear | W2 |
Why was her heart to break | V2 |
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Why was the man so glad to woo | Q |
Sleep and take your rest | I |
Why were the maiden's words so few | Q |
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She sees that he is asleep and slipping off her long cloak like | X2 |
outer garment she pillows his head upon it against the parapet | I |
and half kneeling at his feet she sings very softly | W |
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I love you I love you I love you | Q |
I am the flower at your feet | I |
The birds and the stars are above you | Q |
My place is more sweet | I |
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The birds and the stars are above you | Q |
They envy the flower in the grass | W |
For I only I while I love you | Q |
Can die as you pass | W |
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Light clouds veil the stars growing denser constantly | W |
The castle bell rings for vespers and rising the lady moves | W |
to a corner of the parapet and kneels there | Y2 |
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L | C2 |
Ave Maria gratia plena Dominus | W |
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Voice of the Page from the foot of the tower | D |
My lord my lord they call for you at court | I |
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The knight wakes It is now quite dark | P2 |
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There is a tourney toward your enemy | W |
Has challenged you My lord make haste to come | Y |
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The knight rises and gropes his way toward the stairs | W |
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K | - |
I will make haste Await me where you are | S2 |
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To himself | Z2 |
There was a lady on this tower with me | W |
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He glances around hurriedly but does not see her in the darkness | W |
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Page | E |
My lord has far to ride before the dawn | A3 |
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K To himself | Z2 |
Why should I tarry | W |
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To the page | E |
Bring my horse and shield | I |
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He descends As the noise of his footfall on the stairs dies away | - |
the lady gropes toward the stairway then turns suddenly and going to | Q |
the ledge where they have sat she throws herself over the parapet | I |
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CURTAIN | X |
Sara Teasdale
(1)
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