Myself
What am I? I am Earth the mother,
With all her nebulous memories;
And the young Day, and Night her brother,
And every god that was and is.
As Eve I walked in paradise,
Dreaming of nations, braving death
For knowledge; nor begrudged the price
When the first baby first drew breath.
I sang Deborah's triumph song;
I struck the foe with Judith's sword;
'Twas I who to the angel said,
'Behold the handmaid of the Lord!'
I was fair Helen, she for whom
A nation was content to die;
And Cleopatra, in whose doom
The world went down with Antony.
I am the harlot in the street,
And the veiled nun all undefiled;
In me must queen and beggar meet,
Wise age hark to the little child.
I am the life that ever is,
And the new glory that shall be;
The pain that dies, and the brave bliss
That mounts to immortality.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 47 sec read
- 79 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXAB CDCD XEXE FXFG HEHX BGXG |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 798 |
Words | 157 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"Myself" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 1 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/16903/myself>.
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