Fragment
AT last I entered a long dark gallery,Catacomb-lined; and ranged at the sideWere the bodies of men from far and wideWho, motion past, were nevertheless not dead.
“The sense of waiting here strikes strong;Everyone’s waiting, waiting, it seems to me;What are you waiting for so long?—What is to happen?” I said.
“O we are waiting for one called God,” said they,“(Though by some the Will, or Force, or Laws;And, vaguely, by some, the Ultimate Cause;)Waiting for him to see us before we are clay.Yes; waiting, waiting, for God to know it” . . .
“To know what?” questioned I.“To know how things have been going on earth and below it:It is clear he must know some day.”I thereon asked them why.
“Since he made us humble pioneersOf himself in consciousness of Life’s tears,It needs no mighty prophecyTo tell that what he could mindlessly showHis creatures, he himself will know.
“By some still close-cowled mysteryWe have reached feeling faster than he,But he will overtake us anon,If the world goes on.”
Words in this poem
- thereon adv.
- On that or this. [AS. . See There, and On.]
- needs adv.
- Of necessity; necessarily; indispensably; -- often with must, and equivalent to of need. [Orig. gen. of need, used as an adverb. Cf. - wards.]
- cowled a.
- Wearing a cowl; hooded; as, a cowled monk.
- anon adv.
- Straightway; at once. [OE. anoon, anon, anan, lit., in one (moment), fr. AS. on in + an one. See On and One.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Fragment is in the public domain. This text is taken from Moments of Vision and Miscellaneous Verses, Project Gutenberg ebook #3255; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Thomas Hardy, Fragment, in Moments of Vision and Miscellaneous Verses (1917), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #3255, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/hardy-moments-of-vision/fragment.html, id L24205.
Form and metre
Fragment is 26 lines in 6 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 76%).
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 -AA- gallery · sideA · wideA · dead
- 2 A-A- strongA · me · longA · said
- 3 ABBA- theyA · lawsB · causeB · clayA · it
- 4 A--A iA · it · day · whyA
- 5 AA-BB pioneersA · tearsA · prophecy · showB · knowB
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AT last I entered a long dark gallery, | 10 | ···/˘···/˘ |
| Catacomb-lined; and ranged at the side | 9 | /˘······· |
| Were the bodies of men from far and wide | 10 | ··/˘······ |
| Who, motion past, were nevertheless not dead. | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| “The sense of waiting here strikes strong; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Everyone’s waiting, waiting, it seems to me; | 11 | /˘·/˘/˘···· |
| What are you waiting for so long?— | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| What is to happen?” I said. | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| “O we are waiting for one called God,” said they, | 11 | ···/˘······ |
| “(Though by some the Will, or Force, or Laws; | 9 | ········· |
| And, vaguely, by some, the Ultimate Cause;) | 9 | ·/˘···/˘· |
| Waiting for him to see us before we are clay. | 12 | /˘·········· |
| Yes; waiting, waiting, for God to know it” . . . | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| “To know what?” questioned I. | 7 | ···/˘˘· |
| “To know how things have been going on earth and below it: | 13 | ······/······ |
| It is clear he must know some day.” | 8 | ········ |
| I thereon asked them why. | 7 | ·˘/·˘·· |
| “Since he made us humble pioneers | 9 | ····/˘·˘/ |
| Of himself in consciousness of Life’s tears, | 9 | ·˘/·/˘··· |
| It needs no mighty prophecy | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| To tell that what he could mindlessly show | 9 | ······/˘· |
| His creatures, he himself will know. | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| “By some still close-cowled mystery | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| We have reached feeling faster than he, | 9 | ···/˘/˘·· |
| But he will overtake us anon, | 9 | ···/˘··˘/ |
| If the world goes on.” | 5 | ····· |
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