The Night of Death. 55
"See! my boy, the waves are rising,Save yourself and leave the child!""I will trust in Christ," he answered;Grasped the little one and smiled.
Through the roar of wind and watersEver and anon she cried;But throughout the night of terrorNever Bennie's voice replied.
But above the waves' wild surgingHe had found a safe retreat,As if God had sent an angel,Just to guide his wandering feet.
When the storm had spent its fury,And the sea gave up its deadShe was mourning for her loved ones,Lost amid that night of dread.
While her head was bowed in anguish,On her ear there fell a voice,Bringing surcease to her sorrow,Bidding all her heart rejoice.
"Didn't I tell you true?" said Bennie,And his eyes were full of light,
Words in this poem
- anon adv.
- Straightway; at once. [OE. anoon, anon, anan, lit., in one (moment), fr. AS. on in + an one. See On and One.]
- amid prep.
- In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among. [OE. amidde, amiddes, on midden, AS. on middan, in the middle, fr. midde the middle. The s is an adverbial ending, originally marking the genitive; the t is a la]
- surcease v. t.
- To cause to cease; to end.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Night of Death. 55 is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #679; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, The Night of Death. 55, in Poems (1854–1871), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #679, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/harper-poems/the-night-of-death-55.html, id L10594.
Form and metre
The Night of Death. 55 is 22 lines in 6 stanzas. The metre is trochaic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 91%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.6 syllables. 10 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 trochaic tetrameter.
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 rising · childA · answered · smiledA
- 2 -A-A waters · criedA · terror · repliedA
- 3 -A-A surging · retreatA · angel · feetA
- 4 -A-A fury · deadA · ones · dreadA
- 5 -A-A anguish · voiceA · sorrow · rejoiceA
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 trochaic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| "See! my boy, the waves are rising, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Save yourself and leave the child!" | 7 | ·˘/···· |
| "I will trust in Christ," he answered; | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Grasped the little one and smiled. | 8 | ·˘·/˘··· |
| Through the roar of wind and waters | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Ever and anon she cried; | 7 | /˘·˘/·· |
| But throughout the night of terror | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Never Bennie's voice replied. | 7 | /˘/˘·˘/ |
| But above the waves' wild surging | 8 | ······/˘ |
| He had found a safe retreat, | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| As if God had sent an angel, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Just to guide his wandering feet. | 8 | ····/˘˘· |
| When the storm had spent its fury, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| And the sea gave up its dead | 7 | ······· |
| She was mourning for her loved ones, | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| Lost amid that night of dread. | 7 | ·˘/···· |
| While her head was bowed in anguish, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| On her ear there fell a voice, | 7 | ······· |
| Bringing surcease to her sorrow, | 8 | /˘˘/··/˘ |
| Bidding all her heart rejoice. | 7 | /˘···˘/ |
| "Didn't I tell you true?" said Bennie, | 9 | /˘·····/˘ |
| And his eyes were full of light, | 7 | ······· |
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.