The Heirs Of Stalin Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDEFGHIJIKLMNOPQCR OISTUVWXCYJZA2B2C2PB 2D2E2B2F2G2JH2I2A2 H2| Mute was the marble Mutely glimmered the glass | A |
| Mute stood the sentries bronzed by the breeze | B |
| Thin wisps of smoke curled over the coffin | C |
| And breath seeped through the chinks | D |
| as they bore him out the mausoleum doors | E |
| Slowly the coffin floated grazing the fized bayonets | F |
| He also was mute his embalmed fists | G |
| just pretending to be dead he watched from inside | H |
| He wished to fix each pallbearer in his memory | I |
| young recruits from Ryazan and Kursk | J |
| so that later he might collect enough strength for a sortie | I |
| rise from the grave and reach these unreflecting youths | K |
| He was scheming Had merely dozed off | L |
| And I appealing to our government petition them | M |
| to double and treble the sentries guarding this slab | N |
| and stop Stalin from ever rising again | O |
| and with Stalin the past | P |
| I refer not to the past so holy and glorious | Q |
| of Turksib and Magnitka and the flag raised over Berlin | C |
| By the past in this case I mean the neglect | R |
| of the people's good false charges the jailing of innocent men | O |
| We sowed our crops honestly | I |
| Honestly we smelted metal | S |
| and honestly we marched joining the ranks | T |
| But he feared us Believing in the great goal | U |
| he judged all means justified to that great end | V |
| He was far sighted Adept in the art of political warfare | W |
| he left many heirs behind on this globe | X |
| I fancy there's a telephone in that coffin | C |
| Stalin instructs Enver Hoxha | Y |
| From that coffin where else does the cable go | J |
| No Stalin has not given up He thinks he can cheat death | Z |
| We carried him from the mausoleum | A2 |
| But how remove Stalin's heirs from Stalin | B2 |
| Some of his heirs tend roses in retirement | C2 |
| thinking in secret their enforced leisure will not last | P |
| Others from platforms even heap abuse on Stalin | B2 |
| but at night yearn for the good old days | D2 |
| No wonder Stalin's heirs seem to suffer | E2 |
| these days from heart trouble They the former henchmen | B2 |
| hate this era of emptied prison camps | F2 |
| and auditoriums full of people listening to poets | G2 |
| The Party discourages me from being smug | J |
| 'Why care ' some say but I can't remain inactive | H2 |
| While Stalin's heirs walk this earth | I2 |
| Stalin I fancy still lurks in the mausoleum | A2 |
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| Translated by George Reavey | H2 |
Yevgeny Yevtushenko
(1)
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About The Heirs Of Stalin
The Heirs Of Stalin is a poem by Yevgeny Yevtushenko. This page includes the poem text, poet information, related topics, comments, and similar poems.