The Eruption of Vesuvius
When huge Vesuvius in its torment long,Threatening has growled its cavernous jaws among,When its hot lava, like the bubbling wine,Foaming doth all its monstrous edge incarnadine,Then is alarm in Naples.
With dismay,Wanton and wild her weeping thousands pour,Convulsive grasp the ground, its rage to stay,Implore the angry Mount--in vain implore!For lo! a column tow'ring more and more,Of smoke and ashes from the burning crestShoots like a vulture's neck reared from its airy nest.
Sudden a flash, and from th' enormous denTh' eruption's lurid mass bursts forth amain,Bounding in frantic ecstasy. Ah! thenFarewell to Grecian fount and Tuscan fane!Sails in the bay imbibe the purpling stain,The while the lava in profusion wideFlings o'er the mountain's neck its showery locks untied.
It comes--it comes! that lava deep and rich,That dower which fertilizes fields and fillsNew moles upon the waters, bay and beach.Broad sea and clustered isles, one terror thrillsAs roll the red inexorable rills;While Naples trembles in her palaces,More helpless than the leaves when tempests shake the trees.
Prodigious chaos, streets in ashes lost,Dwellings devoured and vomited again.Roof against neighbor-roof, bewildered, tossed.The waters boiling and the burning plain;While clang the giant steeples as they reel,Unprompted, their own tocsin peal.
Yet 'mid the wreck of cities, and the prideOf the green valleys and the isles laid low,The crash of walls, the tumult waste and wide,O'er sea and land; 'mid all this work of woe,Vesuvius still, though close its crater-glow,Forgetful spares--Heaven wills that it should spare,The lonely cell where kneels an aged priest in prayer.
Words in this poem
- cavernous a.
- Full of caverns; resembling a cavern or large cavity; hollow. [L. cavernosus: cf. F. caverneux.]
- incarnadine a.
- Flesh-colored; of a carnation or pale red color. [F. incarnadin, It. incarnatino; L. pref. in- in + caro, carnis, flesh. Cf. Carnation, Incarnate.]
- angry a.
- Troublesome; vexatious; rigorous. [See Anger.]
- lurid a.
- Pale yellow; ghastly pale; wan; gloomy; dismal. [L. luridus.]
- amain adv.
- With might; with full force; vigorously; violently; exceedingly. [Pref. a- + main. See 2d Main, n.]
- fane n.
- A temple; a place consecrated to religion; a church. [L. fanum a place dedicated to some deity, a sanctuary, fr. fari to speak. See Fame.]
- showery a.
- Raining in showers; abounding with frequent showers of rain.
- prodigious a.
- Of the nature of a prodigy; marvelous; wonderful; portentous. [L. prodigiosus, fr. prodigium a prodigy; cf. F. prodigieux. See Prodigy.]
- chaos n.
- An empty, immeasurable space; a yawning chasm. [L. chaos chaos (in senses 1 & 2), Gr. Chasm.]
- clang v. t.
- To strike together so as to produce a ringing metallic sound. [L. clangere; akin to Gr. clank.]
- tocsin n.
- An alarm bell, or the ringing of a bell for the purpose of alarm. [F., fr. OF. toquier to touch, F. toquer (originally, a dialectic form of F. toucher) + seint (for sein) a bell, LL. signum, fr. L. signum a sign, signal. See To]
- peal v. i.
- To appeal. Spencer.
- crater n.
- The basinlike opening or mouth of a volcano, through which the chief eruption comes; similarly, the mouth of a gevser, about which a cone of silica is often built up. [L. crater, cratera, a mixing vessel, the mouth of a volcano, Gr. ir to cook, Crail, in Holy Grail.]
- forgetful a.
- Apt to forget; easily losing remembrance; as, a forgetful man should use helps to strengthen his memory.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Eruption of Vesuvius is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #8775, the various hands 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: Victor Hugo, The Eruption of Vesuvius, in Poems (1888), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #8775, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/hugo-poems/the-eruption-of-vesuvius.html, id L26749.
Form and metre
The Eruption of Vesuvius is 39 lines in 6 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is ABABBCC, complete in 4 of its 6 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%).
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.
- 2 ABABBCC dismayA · pourB · stayA · imploreB · moreB · crestC · nestC
- 3 ABABBCC denA · amainB · thenA · faneB · stainB · wideC · untiedC
- 4 ABABBCC richA · fillsB · beachA · thrillsB · rillsB · palacesC · treesC
- 5 ABABCC lostA · againB · tossedA · plainB · reelC · pealC
- 6 ABABBCC prideA · lowB · wideA · woeB · glowB · spareC · prayerC
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 |
|---|---|---|
| When huge Vesuvius in its torment long, | 10 | ··˘/˘··/·· |
| Threatening has growled its cavernous jaws among, | 10 | /˘···/˘··· |
| When its hot lava, like the bubbling wine, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Foaming doth all its monstrous edge incarnadine, | 12 | /˘···/˘·˘/˘˘ |
| Then is alarm in Naples. | 7 | ··˘/·/˘ |
| With dismay, | 3 | ·˘/ |
| Wanton and wild her weeping thousands pour, | 10 | /˘···/˘/˘· |
| Convulsive grasp the ground, its rage to stay, | 10 | ˘/˘······· |
| Implore the angry Mount--in vain implore! | 10 | ˘/·/˘···˘/ |
| For lo! a column tow'ring more and more, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Of smoke and ashes from the burning crest | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Shoots like a vulture's neck reared from its airy nest. | 12 | ···/˘····/˘· |
| Sudden a flash, and from th' enormous den | 10 | /˘····˘/˘· |
| Th' eruption's lurid mass bursts forth amain, | 10 | ˘/˘/˘···˘/ |
| Bounding in frantic ecstasy. Ah! then | 10 | /˘·/˘/˘˘·· |
| Farewell to Grecian fount and Tuscan fane! | 10 | ·/·/˘··/˘· |
| Sails in the bay imbibe the purpling stain, | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| The while the lava in profusion wide | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| Flings o'er the mountain's neck its showery locks untied. | 13 | ···/˘··/˘˘·˘/ |
| It comes--it comes! that lava deep and rich, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| That dower which fertilizes fields and fills | 10 | ···/˘·˘··· |
| New moles upon the waters, bay and beach. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Broad sea and clustered isles, one terror thrills | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| As roll the red inexorable rills; | 10 | ·····/˘˘˘· |
| While Naples trembles in her palaces, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘˘ |
| More helpless than the leaves when tempests shake the trees. | 12 | ·/˘····/˘··· |
| Prodigious chaos, streets in ashes lost, | 10 | ˘/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Dwellings devoured and vomited again. | 10 | /˘˘/·/˘˘˘/ |
| Roof against neighbor-roof, bewildered, tossed. | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| The waters boiling and the burning plain; | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| While clang the giant steeples as they reel, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Unprompted, their own tocsin peal. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Yet 'mid the wreck of cities, and the pride | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Of the green valleys and the isles laid low, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| The crash of walls, the tumult waste and wide, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| O'er sea and land; 'mid all this work of woe, | 10 | ·········· |
| Vesuvius still, though close its crater-glow, | 10 | ˘/˘····/˘· |
| Forgetful spares--Heaven wills that it should spare, | 10 | ˘/˘·/····· |
| The lonely cell where kneels an aged priest in prayer. | 11 | ·/˘········ |
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