Solitude
Upon a hill, which rears itself midst plains extending wide,Fair flourishes a lofty OAK in beauty's blooming pride;This lofty oak in solitude its branches wide expands,All lonesome on the cheerless height like sentinel it stands.Whom can it lend its friendly shade, should Sol with fervour glow?And who can shelter it from harm, should tempests rudely blow?No bushes green, entwining close, here deck the neighbouring ground,No tufted pines beside it grow, no osiers thrive around.Sad even to trees their cheerless fate in solitude if grown,And bitter, bitter is the lot for youth to live alone!Though gold and silver much is his, how vain the selfish pride!Though crowned with glory's laurelled wreath, with whom that crown divide?When I with an acquaintance meet he scarce a bow affords,And beauties, half saluting me, but grant some transient words.On some I look myself with dread, whilst others from me fly,But sadder still the uncherished soul when Fate's dark hour draws nigh;Oh! where my aching heart relieve when griefs assail me sore?My friend, who sleeps in the cold earth, comes to my aid no more!No relatives, alas! of mine in this strange clime appear,No wife imparts love's fond caress, sweet smile, or pitying tear;No father feels joy's thrilling throb, as he our transport sees;No gay and sportive little ones come clambering on my knees;--Take back all honours, wealth, and fame, the heart they cannot move,And give instead the smiles of friends, the tender look of love!
Words in this poem
- lonesome a.
- Secluded from society; not frequented by human beings; solitary.
- fervour n.
- Heat; excessive warmth. [OF. fervor, fervour, F. ferveur, L. fervor, fr. fervere. See Fervent.]
- neighbouring a.
- Living or being near; adjacent; as, the neighboring nations or countries.
- scarce a.
- Not plentiful or abundant; in small quantity in proportion to the demand; not easily to be procured; rare; uncommon. [OE. scars, OF. escars, eschars, LL. scarpsus, for L. excerptus, p. p. of excerpere to pick out, and hence to contract, to shorten; ex (see Ex-) + carpere. See C]
- aching a.
- That aches; continuously painful. See Ache.
- relieve v. t.
- To lift up; to raise again, as one who has fallen; to cause to rise. Piers Plowman. [OE. releven, F. relever to raise again, discharge, relieve, fr. L. relevare to lift up, raise, make light, relieve; pref. re- re- + levare to raise, fr. levis l]
- clime n.
- A climate; a tract or region of the earth. See Climate. [L. clima. See Climate.]
- caress n.
- An act of endearment; any act or expression of affection; an embracing, or touching, with tenderness. [F. caresse, It. carezza, LL. caritia dearness, fr. L. carus dear. See Charity.]
- pitying a.
- Expressing pity; as, a pitying eye, glance, or word.
- thrilling a.
- Causing a thrill; causing tremulous excitement; deeply moving; as, a thrilling romance.
- throb v. i.
- To beat, or pulsate, with more than usual force or rapidity; to beat in consequence of agitation; to palpitate; -- said of the heart, pulse, etc. [OE. ; of uncertain origin; cf. Russ. trepete a trembling, and E. trepidation.]
- wealth n.
- Weal; welfare; prosperity; good. [OE. welthe, from wele; cf. D. weelde luxury. See Weal prosperity.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Solitude is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Bakchesarian Fountain and Other Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #8192; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Alexander Pushkin, Solitude, in The Bakchesarian Fountain and Other Poems (1849), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #8192, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/pushkin-bakchesarian/by-merzliakoff.html, id L25563.
Form and metre
Solitude is 24 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 92% of the lines. The metre is iambic heptameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%).
See other poems in rhyming couplets, other poems in iambic heptameter.
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 AABBCCDDEEAA--FFGGHHIIJJ wideA · prideA · expandsB · standsB · glowC · blowC · groundD · aroundD · grownE · aloneE · prideA · divideA · affords · words · flyF · nighF · soreG · moreG · appearH · tearH · seesI · kneesI · moveJ · loveJ
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 heptameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Upon a hill, which rears itself midst plains extending wide, | 14 | ······˘/··˘/˘· |
| Fair flourishes a lofty OAK in beauty's blooming pride; | 14 | ·/˘˘·/˘··/˘/˘· |
| This lofty oak in solitude its branches wide expands, | 14 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| All lonesome on the cheerless height like sentinel it stands. | 14 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘˘·· |
| Whom can it lend its friendly shade, should Sol with fervour glow? | 14 | ·····/˘····/˘· |
| And who can shelter it from harm, should tempests rudely blow? | 14 | ···/˘····/˘/˘· |
| No bushes green, entwining close, here deck the neighbouring ground, | 14 | ·/˘·˘/˘····/˘· |
| No tufted pines beside it grow, no osiers thrive around. | 14 | ·/˘·˘/········ |
| Sad even to trees their cheerless fate in solitude if grown, | 14 | ·/···/˘··/˘··· |
| And bitter, bitter is the lot for youth to live alone! | 14 | ·/˘/˘·······˘/ |
| Though gold and silver much is his, how vain the selfish pride! | 14 | ···/˘······/˘· |
| Though crowned with glory's laurelled wreath, with whom that crown divide? | 14 | ···/˘/˘·····˘/ |
| When I with an acquaintance meet he scarce a bow affords, | 14 | ····˘/˘·····˘/ |
| And beauties, half saluting me, but grant some transient words. | 14 | ·/˘·˘/˘····/˘· |
| On some I look myself with dread, whilst others from me fly, | 14 | ·····/···/˘··· |
| But sadder still the uncherished soul when Fate's dark hour draws nigh; | 15 | ·/˘·········/·· |
| Oh! where my aching heart relieve when griefs assail me sore? | 14 | ···/˘·˘/··˘/·· |
| My friend, who sleeps in the cold earth, comes to my aid no more! | 14 | ·············· |
| No relatives, alas! of mine in this strange clime appear, | 14 | ·/˘˘˘/······˘/ |
| No wife imparts love's fond caress, sweet smile, or pitying tear; | 14 | ··˘/··˘/···/˘· |
| No father feels joy's thrilling throb, as he our transport sees; | 14 | ·/˘··/˘···//˘· |
| No gay and sportive little ones come clambering on my knees;-- | 14 | ···/˘/˘··/˘··· |
| Take back all honours, wealth, and fame, the heart they cannot move, | 14 | ···/˘······/˘· |
| And give instead the smiles of friends, the tender look of love! | 14 | ··˘/·····/˘··· |
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.