Analysis of Care of Birds for their Young
James Thomson 1700 (Port Glasgow) – 1748 (London)
As thus the patient dam assiduous sits,
Not to be tempted from her tender task,
Or by sharp hunger, or by smooth delight,
Tho' the whole loosen'd spring around her blows,
Her sympathising partner takes his stand
High on th' opponent bank, and ceaseless sings
The tedious time away; or else supplies
Her place a moment, while she sudden flits
To pick the scanty meal. Th' appointed time
With pious toil fulfill'd, the callow young,
Warm'd and expanded into perfect life,
Their brittle bondage break, and come to light,
A helpless family, demanding food
With constant clamour. O what passions then,
What melting sentiments of kindly care,
On the new parents seize! Away they fly
Affectionate, and undesiring bear
The more delicious morsel to their young;
Which equally distributed, again
The search begins. Even so a gentle pair,
By fortune sunk, but form'd of gen'rous mould,
And charm'd with cares beyond the vulgar breat;
In some lone cot amid the distant woods,
Sustain'd alone by providential Heav'n,
Oft, as they weeping, eye their infant train,
Check their own appetites, and give them all.
Nor toil alone they scorn: exalting love,
By the great Father of the spring inspired,
Gives instant courage to the fearful race,
And to the simple art. With stealthy wing,
Should some rude foot their woody haunts molest,
Amid a neighbouring bush they silent drop,
And whirring thence, as if alarmed, deceive
The unfeeling shool-boy. Hence, around the head
Of wandering swain, the white winged plover wheels
Her sounding flight, and then directly on,
In long excursion, skims the level lawn,
To tempt him from her nest. The wild-duck hence,
O'er the rough moss; and o'er the trackless waste
The heath-hen flutters; pious fraud! to lead
The hot-pursuing spaniel far astray.
Scheme | ABCDEFGAHIJCKLMNMILMOCPLQRSTUVWXYZ1 2 3 4 5 Z6 |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101010101 1111010101 1111011101 1011010101 0110111 111101010101 01001011101 0101011101 110101110101 1101010101 1001001011 1101010111 0101000101 110111101 1101001101 1011010111 0100011 0101010111 1100010001 01011010101 110111111 0111010101 0111010101 010110101 1111011101 111100111 1101110101 10110101010 1101010101 0101011101 1111110101 010111101 0101110101 00101110101 11001011101 0101010101 0101010101 1111010111 10011010011 0111010111 0101010101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,738 |
Words | 296 |
Sentences | 11 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 41 |
Lines Amount | 41 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 1,400 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 294 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:31 min read
- 28 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Care of Birds for their Young" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/20560/care-of-birds-for-their-young>.
Discuss this James Thomson poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In