The Return of Youth
My friend, thou sorrowest for thy golden prime,For thy fair youthful years too swift of flight;Thou musest, with wet eyes, upon the timeOf cheerful hopes that filled the world with light,--Years when thy heart was bold, thy hand was strong,And quick the thought that moved thy tongue to speak,And willing faith was thine, and scorn of wrongSummoned the sudden crimson to thy cheek.
Thou lookest forward on the coming days,Shuddering to feel their shadow o'er thee creep;A path, thick-set with changes and decays,Slopes downward to the place of common sleep;And they who walked with thee in life's first stage,Leave one by one thy side, and, waiting near,Thou seest the sad companions of thy age--Dull love of rest, and weariness and fear.
Yet grieve thou not, nor think thy youth is gone,Nor deem that glorious season e'er could die.Thy pleasant youth, a little while withdrawn,Waits on the horizon of a brighter sky;Waits, like the morn, that folds her wing and hides,Till the slow stars bring back her dawning hour;Waits, like the vanished spring, that slumbering bidesHer own sweet time to waken bud and flower.
There shall he welcome thee, when thou shalt standOn his bright morning hills, with smiles more sweetThan when at first he took thee by the hand,Through the fair earth to lead thy tender feet.He shall bring back, but brighter, broader still,Life's early glory to thine eyes again,Shall clothe thy spirit with new strength, and fillThy leaping heart with warmer love than then.
Hast thou not glimpses, in the twilight here,Of mountains where immortal morn prevails?Comes there not, through the silence, to thine earA gentle rustling of the morning gales;A murmur, wafted from that glorious shore,Of streams that water banks for ever fair,And voices of the loved ones gone before,More musical in that celestial air?
Words in this poem
- deem v. t.
- To decide; to judge; to sentence; to condemn. [OE. demen to judge, condemn, AS. d, fr. d doom; akin to OFries. d, OS. ad, D. doemen, OHG. tuommen, Icel. dæma, Sw. dömma, Dan. dömme, Goth. d. See Doom, n., an]
- glorious a.
- Exhibiting attributes, qualities, or acts that are worthy of or receive glory; noble; praiseworthy; excellent; splendid; illustrious; inspiring admiration; as, glorious deeds. [OF. glorios, glorious, F. glorieux, fr. L. gloriosus. See Glory, n.]
- morn n.
- The first part of the day; the morning; -- used chiefly in poetry. [OE. morwen, morgen, AS. morgen; akin to D. morgen, OS. morgan, G. morgen, Icel. morginn, morgunn, Sw. morgon, Dan. morgen, Goth. maúrgins. Cf. Morrow, Morning.]
- waken v. i.
- To wake; to cease to sleep; to be awakened. [OE. waknen, AS. wæcnan; akin to Goth. gawaknan. See Wake, v. i.]
- 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,]
- shalt
- 2d per. sing. of Shall.
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Return of Youth is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems by William Cullen Bryant, Project Gutenberg ebook #16341; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: William Cullen Bryant, The Return of Youth, in Poems (1821–1876), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #16341, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bryant-poems/the-return-of-youth.html, id L07364.
Form and metre
The Return of Youth is 40 lines in 5 stanzas of 8 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABABCDCD. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 18% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
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 ABABCDCD primeA · flightB · timeA · lightB · strongC · speakD · wrongC · cheekD
- 2 ABABCDCD daysA · creepB · decaysA · sleepB · stageC · nearD · ageC · fearD
- 3 ABABCDCD goneA · dieB · withdrawnA · skyB · hidesC · hourD · bidesC · flowerD
- 4 ABABCDCD standA · sweetB · handA · feetB · stillC · againD · fillC · thenD
- 5 ABABCDCD hereA · prevailsB · earA · galesB · shoreC · fairD · beforeC · airD
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 iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| My friend, thou sorrowest for thy golden prime, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| For thy fair youthful years too swift of flight; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Thou musest, with wet eyes, upon the time | 10 | ·········· |
| Of cheerful hopes that filled the world with light,-- | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Years when thy heart was bold, thy hand was strong, | 10 | ·········· |
| And quick the thought that moved thy tongue to speak, | 10 | ·········· |
| And willing faith was thine, and scorn of wrong | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Summoned the sudden crimson to thy cheek. | 10 | /˘·/˘/˘··· |
| Thou lookest forward on the coming days, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Shuddering to feel their shadow o'er thee creep; | 10 | /˘···/···· |
| A path, thick-set with changes and decays, | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| Slopes downward to the place of common sleep; | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| And they who walked with thee in life's first stage, | 10 | ·········· |
| Leave one by one thy side, and, waiting near, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Thou seest the sad companions of thy age-- | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Dull love of rest, and weariness and fear. | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| Yet grieve thou not, nor think thy youth is gone, | 10 | ·········· |
| Nor deem that glorious season e'er could die. | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Thy pleasant youth, a little while withdrawn, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| Waits on the horizon of a brighter sky; | 10 | ···˘/˘··/· |
| Waits, like the morn, that folds her wing and hides, | 10 | ·········· |
| Till the slow stars bring back her dawning hour; | 11 | ·······/˘/˘ |
| Waits, like the vanished spring, that slumbering bides | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Her own sweet time to waken bud and flower. | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| There shall he welcome thee, when thou shalt stand | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| On his bright morning hills, with smiles more sweet | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Than when at first he took thee by the hand, | 10 | ·········· |
| Through the fair earth to lead thy tender feet. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| He shall bring back, but brighter, broader still, | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| Life's early glory to thine eyes again, | 10 | ·/˘/˘···˘/ |
| Shall clothe thy spirit with new strength, and fill | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Thy leaping heart with warmer love than then. | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Hast thou not glimpses, in the twilight here, | 10 | ···/˘··/·· |
| Of mountains where immortal morn prevails? | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘·˘/ |
| Comes there not, through the silence, to thine ear | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| A gentle rustling of the morning gales; | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| A murmur, wafted from that glorious shore, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Of streams that water banks for ever fair, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And voices of the loved ones gone before, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| More musical in that celestial air? | 10 | ·/˘˘··˘/˘· |
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.