Analysis of Oh! Blame Not the Bard

Thomas Moore 1779 (Dublin) – 1852 (Bromham)



Oh! blame not the bard, if he fly to the bowers
Where Pleasure lies, carelessly smiling at Fame;
He was born for much more, and in happier hours
His soul might have burn'd with a holier flame.
The string, that now languishes loose o'er the lyre,
Might have bent a proud bow to the warrior's dart;
And the lip, which now breathes but the song of desire
Might have pour'd the full tide of a patriot's heart.

But alas for his country! -- her pride is gone by,
And that spirit is broken which never would bend;
O'er the ruin her children in secret must sigh,
For 'tis treason to love her, and death to defend.
Unprized are her sons, till they've learn'd to betray;
Undistinguish'd they live, if they shame not their sires;
And the torch, that would light them through dignity's way,
Must be caught from the pile where their country expires.

Then blame not the bard, if in pleasure's soft dream
He should try to forget what he never can heal:
Oh! give but a hope -- let a vista but gleam
Through the gloom of his country, and mark how he'll feel!
That instant, his heart at her shrine would lay down
Every passion it nursed, every bliss it adored;
While the myrtle, now idly entwined with his crown,
Like the wreath of Harmodius, should cover his sword.

But though glory be gone, and though hope fade away,
Thy name, loved Erin, shall live in his songs;
Not even in the hour when his heart is most gay
Will he lose the remembrance of thee and thy wrongs.
The stranger shall hear thy lament on his plains;
The sign of thy harp shall be sent o'er the deep,
Till thy masters themselves, as they rivet thy chains,
Shall pause at the song of their captive, and weep!


Scheme ABABXCXC DEDEFXFA GHGHIJIJ FKFKLMLM
Poetic Form
Metre 111011111010 11011001011 1111110010010 11111101001 011110011001 1110111011 0011111011010 111011101001 101111001111 011011011011 1001001001011 111011001101 1101111101 01011111111 0011111111 1111011110010 1110110111 111101111011 11101101011 101111001111 11011101111 10010111001101 101011001111 1011111011 111011011101 1111011011 1100010111111 111001011011 01011101111 011111111001 111001111011 11101111001
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 1,662
Words 313
Sentences 12
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 40
Words per line (avg) 10
Letters per stanza (avg) 320
Words per stanza (avg) 78
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:37 min read
110

Thomas Moore

Thomas Moore was an Irish poet singer songwriter and entertainer now best remembered for the lyrics of The Minstrel Boy and the The Last Rose of Summer more…

All Thomas Moore poems | Thomas Moore Books

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