From the Cantata for N. F. S. Grundtvig
His day was the greatest the Northland has seen,It one was with the midnight-sun's wonders serene:The light wherein he sat was the light of God's true peace,And that has never morning, nor night when it must cease.
In light of God's peace shone the history he gave,The spirit's course on earth that shall conquer the grave.Might of God's pure peace thus our fathers' mighty wayBefore us for example and warning open lay.
In light of God's peace he beheld with watchful eyeThe people at their work and the spirit's strivings high.In light of God's pure peace he would have all learning glow,And where his word is honored the "Folk-High-Schools" must grow.
In light of God's peace stood 'mid sorrow and careFor Denmark's folk his comfort, a castle strong and fair;In light of God's pure peace there shall once again be wonAnd thousand-fold increased, what seems lost now and undone.
In light of God's peace stands his patriarch-worth,The sum and the amen of a manful life on earth.In light of God's pure peace how his face shone, lifted up,When white-haired at the altar he held th' atoning cup.
In light of God's peace came his word o'er the wave,In light of God's pure peace sound the sweet psalms he gave.In light of God's pure peace, as its sunbeam curtains fallTo hide him from us, stands now his memory for all.
Words in this poem
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- folk n.
- In Anglo-Saxon times, the people of a group of townships or villages; a community; a tribe. [AS. folc; akin to D. volk, OS. & OHG. folk, G. volk, Icel. f, Sw. & Dan. folk, Lith. pulkas crowd, and perh. to E. follow.]
- undone a.
- Not done or performed; neglected. [Pref. un- not + done.]
- amen interj.
- An expression used at the end of prayers, and meaning, So be it. At the end of a creed, it is a solemn asseveration of belief. [L. amen, Gr. am certainly, truly.]
- manful a.
- Showing manliness, or manly spirit; hence, brave, courageous, resolute, noble.
- sunbeam n.
- A beam or ray of the sun. [AS. sunnebeam.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
From the Cantata for N. F. S. Grundtvig is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems and Songs, Project Gutenberg ebook #6619, the Arthur Hubbell Palmer translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, From the Cantata for N. F. S. Grundtvig, in Poems and Songs (1915), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #6619, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bjornson-poems-and-songs/from-the-cantata-for-n-f-s-grundtvig.html, id L29326.
Form and metre
From the Cantata for N. F. S. Grundtvig is 24 lines in 6 stanzas of 4 lines each. Every stanza rhymes AABB. The metre is alexandrines, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 72%).
See other poems in alexandrines.
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 AABB seenA · sereneA · peaceB · ceaseB
- 2 AABB gaveA · graveA · wayB · layB
- 3 AABB eyeA · highA · glowB · growB
- 4 AABB careA · fairA · wonB · undoneB
- 5 AABB worthA · earthA · upB · cupB
- 6 AABB waveA · gaveA · fallB · allB
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 alexandrines. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| His day was the greatest the Northland has seen, | 11 | ····/˘·/··· |
| It one was with the midnight-sun's wonders serene: | 12 | ·····/··/˘˘/ |
| The light wherein he sat was the light of God's true peace, | 13 | ············· |
| And that has never morning, nor night when it must cease. | 13 | ···/˘/˘······ |
| In light of God's peace shone the history he gave, | 12 | ·······/˘˘·· |
| The spirit's course on earth that shall conquer the grave. | 12 | ·/˘·····/˘·· |
| Might of God's pure peace thus our fathers' mighty way | 13 | ······/˘/˘/˘· |
| Before us for example and warning open lay. | 13 | ····˘/˘·/˘/˘· |
| In light of God's peace he beheld with watchful eye | 12 | ······˘/·/˘· |
| The people at their work and the spirit's strivings high. | 13 | ·/˘·····/˘/˘· |
| In light of God's pure peace he would have all learning glow, | 13 | ··········/˘· |
| And where his word is honored the "Folk-High-Schools" must grow. | 13 | ·····/˘······ |
| In light of God's peace stood 'mid sorrow and care | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| For Denmark's folk his comfort, a castle strong and fair; | 13 | ·/···/˘·/˘··· |
| In light of God's pure peace there shall once again be won | 13 | ·········˘/·· |
| And thousand-fold increased, what seems lost now and undone. | 13 | ·/˘·˘/·····˘/ |
| In light of God's peace stands his patriarch-worth, | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| The sum and the amen of a manful life on earth. | 13 | ····˘/··/˘··· |
| In light of God's pure peace how his face shone, lifted up, | 13 | ··········/˘· |
| When white-haired at the altar he held th' atoning cup. | 13 | ·····/˘··˘/˘· |
| In light of God's peace came his word o'er the wave, | 11 | ··········· |
| In light of God's pure peace sound the sweet psalms he gave. | 12 | ············ |
| In light of God's pure peace, as its sunbeam curtains fall | 13 | ········/·/˘· |
| To hide him from us, stands now his memory for all. | 13 | ········/˘˘·· |
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