Reflection
Why should we think the years of lifeWill pass serenely by,When, for a day, the Sun himselfNe'er sees a cloudless sky!
And, unassuming as she moves,The meek-eyed Queen of night,Meets wand'ring vapours in her pathTo dim her paler light!
Then why should we in vain repineAt man's uncertain lot,That cares will equally assailThe palace and the cot?
For Heaven ordains this chequer'd sceneOur mortal pow'rs t' employ;That we might know, compare, select,Be grateful, and enjoy.
Words in this poem
- serenely adv.
- In a serene manner; clearly.
- cloudless a.
- Without a cloud; clear; bright.
- unassuming a.
- Not assuming; not bold or forward; not arrogant or presuming; humble; modest; retiring; as, an unassuming youth; unassuming manners.
- repine v. i.
- To fail; to wane. [Pref. re- + pine to languish.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Reflection is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #9998; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Matilda Betham, Reflection, in Poems (1808), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #9998, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/betham-poems/reflection.html, id L23531.
Form and metre
Reflection is 16 lines in 4 stanzas of 4 lines each. The metre is common measure, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%).
See other poems in common measure.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 -A-A life · byA · himself · skyA
- 2 -A-A moves · nightA · path · lightA
- 3 -A-A repine · lotA · assail · cotA
- 4 -A-A scene · employA · select · enjoyA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against common measure. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Why should we think the years of life | 8 | ········ |
| Will pass serenely by, | 7 | ··˘/˘˘· |
| When, for a day, the Sun himself | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Ne'er sees a cloudless sky! | 6 | ···/˘· |
| And, unassuming as she moves, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| The meek-eyed Queen of night, | 6 | ······ |
| Meets wand'ring vapours in her path | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| To dim her paler light! | 6 | ······ |
| Then why should we in vain repine | 8 | ······˘/ |
| At man's uncertain lot, | 6 | ··˘/˘· |
| That cares will equally assail | 8 | ···/˘˘˘/ |
| The palace and the cot? | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| For Heaven ordains this chequer'd scene | 8 | ·/˘/···· |
| Our mortal pow'rs t' employ; | 8 | /˘/˘··˘/ |
| That we might know, compare, select, | 8 | ····˘/˘/ |
| Be grateful, and enjoy. | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.