From The Top Of The Stairs Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCD EBFBGH EIJKLM NOPJEQJ RBSTBUVFW XYZA2GB2 C2BD2WFE2 F2G2XH2GI2GE2J2 AXXK2L2M2N2 O2J2P2| Of course | A |
| those who are standing at the top of the stairs | B |
| know | C |
| they know everything | D |
| - | |
| with us it's different | E |
| sweepers of squares | B |
| hostages of a better future | F |
| those at the top of the stairs | B |
| appear to us rarely | G |
| with a hushing finger always at the mouth | H |
| - | |
| we are patient | E |
| our wives darn the sunday shirts | I |
| we talk of food rations | J |
| soccer prices of shoes | K |
| while on saturday we tilt the head backward | L |
| and drink | M |
| - | |
| we aren't those | N |
| who clench their fists | O |
| brandish chains | P |
| talk and ask questions | J |
| in a fever of excitement | E |
| urging to rebel | Q |
| incessantly talking and asking questions | J |
| - | |
| here is their fairy tale | R |
| we will dash at the stairs | B |
| and capture them by storm | S |
| the heads of those who were standing at the top | T |
| will roll down the stairs | B |
| and at last we will gaze | U |
| at what can be seen from those heights | V |
| what future | F |
| what emptiness | W |
| - | |
| we don't desire the view | X |
| of rolling heads | Y |
| we know how easily heads grow back | Z |
| and at the top there will always remain | A2 |
| one or three | G |
| while at the bottom it is black from brooms and shovels | B2 |
| - | |
| sometimes we dream | C2 |
| those at the top of the stairs | B |
| come down | D2 |
| that is to us | W |
| and as we are chewing bread over the newspaper | F |
| they say | E2 |
| - | |
| now let's talk | F2 |
| man to man | G2 |
| what the posters shout out isn't true | X |
| we carry the truth in tightly locked lips | H2 |
| it is cruel and much too heavy | G |
| so we bear the burden by ourselves | I2 |
| we aren't happy | G |
| we would gladly stay | E2 |
| here | J2 |
| - | |
| these are dreams of course | A |
| they can come true | X |
| or not come true | X |
| so we will | K2 |
| continue to cultivate | L2 |
| our square of dirt | M2 |
| square of stone | N2 |
| - | |
| with a light head | O2 |
| a cigarette behind the ear | J2 |
| and not a drop of hope in the heart | P2 |
Zbigniew Herbert
(1)
Poem topics: , Print This Poem , Rhyme Scheme
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