Incorrect Speaking
Charles Lamb 1775 (Inner Temple, London) – 1834 (Edmonton, London)
Incorrectness in your speech
Carefully avoid, my Anna;
Study well the sense of each
Sentence, lest in any manner
It misrepresent the truth;
Veracity's the charm of youth.
You will not, I know, tell lies,
If you know what you are speaking.
Truth is shy, and from us flies;
Unless diligently seeking
Into every word we pry,
Falsehood will her place supply.
Falsehood is not shy, not she,-
Ever ready to take place of
Truth, too oft we Falsehood see,
Or at least some latent trace of
Falsehood, in the incorrect
Words of those who Truth respect.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 30 sec read
- 78 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXAXBB CDCDEE FGFGHH |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 533 |
Words | 100 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 6, 6 |
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"Incorrect Speaking" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/5347/incorrect-speaking>.
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