Analysis of Whispers of Heavenly Death

Walt Whitman 1819 (West Hills) – 1892 (Camden)



WHISPERS of heavenly death, murmur’d I hear;   
Labial gossip of night—sibilant chorals;   
Footsteps gently ascending—mystical breezes, wafted soft and low;   
Ripples of unseen rivers—tides of a current, flowing, forever flowing;   
(Or is it the plashing of tears? the measureless waters of human tears?)     

I see, just see, skyward, great cloud-masses;   
Mournfully, slowly they roll, silently swelling and
mixing;   
With, at times, a half-dimm’d, sadden’d, far-off star,   
Appearing and disappearing.   
   (Some parturition, rather—some solemn, immortal birth:   
On the frontiers, to eyes impenetrable,   
Some Soul is passing over.)


Scheme XXXAX XXAXAXXX
Poetic Form
Metre 1011001111 11011110 1100101001010101 1010110110101001010 111011101101101 1111101110 11011100100 10 1110111111 0100010 11101100101 10011101000 1111010
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 651
Words 88
Sentences 5
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 5, 8
Lines Amount 13
Letters per line (avg) 37
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 240
Words per stanza (avg) 43
Font size:
 

Submitted on March 09, 2015

Modified on April 07, 2023

26 sec read
174

Walt Whitman

Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. more…

All Walt Whitman poems | Walt Whitman Books

35 fans

Discuss this Walt Whitman poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Whispers of Heavenly Death" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 1 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/43773/whispers-of-heavenly-death>.

    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!

    June 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    29
    days
    19
    hours
    37
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

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

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not _______ both
    A see
    B follow
    C travel
    D choose