Analysis of Detachment
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
As I go forth from fair to mart
With racket ringing,
Who would divine that in my heart
Mad larks are singing.
As I sweet sympathy express,
Lest I should pain them,
The money-mongers cannot guess
How I disdain them.
As I sit at some silly tea
And flirt and flatter
How I abhor society
And female chatter.
As I with wonderment survey
Their peacock dresses,
My mind is wafted far away
To wildernesses.
As I sit in some raucous pub,
Taboo to women,
And treat myself to greasy grub
I feel quite human.
Yet there I dream, despite the din,
Of God's green spaces,
And sweetly dwell the peace within
Of sylvan graces.
And so I wear my daily mask
Of pleasant seeming,
And nobody takes me to task
For distant dreaming;
A happy hypocrite am I
Of ambiance inner,
Who smiling make the same reply
To saint and sinner.
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEFGHGC IJIJKHKX LBLBMFMF |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11111111 11010 11011011 11110 11110001 11111 01010101 11011 11111101 01010 11010100 0110 11110001 1110 11110101 11 11101101 01110 0111101 11110 11110101 11110 01010101 11010 01111101 11010 011111 11010 0101011 110010 11010101 11010 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 779 |
Words | 153 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 20 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 158 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 38 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 46 sec read
- 125 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Detachment" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 3 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32077/detachment>.
Discuss this Robert William Service 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