I have lived with Shades
Thomas Hardy 1840 (Stinsford) – 1928 (Dorchester, Dorset)
I
I have lived with Shades so long,
So long have talked to them,
I sped to street and throng,
That sometimes they
In their dim style
Will pause awhile
To hear my say;
II
And take me by the hand,
And lead me through their rooms
In the To-Be, where Dooms
Half-wove and shapeless stand:
And show from there
The dwindled dust
And rot and rust
Of things that were.
III
"Now turn," they said to me
One day: "Look whence we came,
And signify his name
Who gazes thence at thee" --
-- "Nor name nor race
Know I, or can,"
I said, "Of man
So commonplace."
IV
"He moves me not at all:
I note no ray or jot
Of rareness in his lot,
Or star exceptional.
Into the dim
Dead throngs around
He'll sink, nor sound
Be left of him."
V
"Yet," said they, "his frail speech,
Hath accents pitched like thine --
Thy mould and his define
A likeness each to each --
But go! Deep pain
Alas, would be
His name to thee,
And told in vain!"
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 55 sec read
- 115 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXABCCB DEEDXFFX GHHGIJJI XKKXLMML NOONPGGP |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 871 |
Words | 191 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
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"I have lived with Shades" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 6 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/36395/i-have-lived-with-shades>.
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