Composed by the Sea-Side, Near Calais, August, 1802
Fair Star of evening, Splendour of the west,Star of my Country!--on the horizon's brinkThou hangest, stooping, as might seem, to sinkOn England's bosom; yet well pleased to rest,Meanwhile, and be to her a glorious crestConspicuous to the Nations. Thou, I think,Should'st be my Country's emblem; and should'st wink,Bright Star! with laughter on her banners, drestIn thy fresh beauty. There! that dusky spotBeneath thee, that is England; there she lies.Blessings be on you both! one hope, one lot,One life, one glory!--I, with many a fearFor my dear Country, many heartfelt sighs,Among men who do not love her, linger here.
Words in this poem
- splendour n.
- Great brightness; brilliant luster; brilliancy; as, the splendor ot the sun. B. Jonson. [L. fr. splendere to shine: cf. F. splendeur.]
- brink n.
- The edge, margin, or border of a steep place, as of a precipice; a bank or edge, as of a river or pit; a verge; a border; as, the brink of a chasm. Also Fig. [Dan. brink edge, verge; akin to Sw. brink declivity, hill, Icel. brekka; cf. LG. brink a grassy hill, W. bryn hill, bryncyn hillock.]
- meanwhile n.
- The intervening time; as, in the meantime (or mean time).
- 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.]
- heartfelt a.
- Hearty; sincere.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Composed by the Sea-Side, Near Calais, August, 1802 is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of William Wordsworth — Volume 2 (of 8), Project Gutenberg ebook #12145; 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 Wordsworth, Composed by the Sea-Side, Near Calais, August, 1802, in The Poetical Works, Volume II (1798–1807), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12145, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/wordsworth-vol2/composed-by-the-sea-side-near-calais-august-1802.html, id L17355.
Form and metre
Composed by the Sea-Side, Near Calais, August, 1802 is 14 lines in a single stanza. It rhymes ABBAABBACDCEDE. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 84%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 43% 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 ABBAABBACDCEDE westA · brinkB · sinkB · restA · crestA · thinkB · winkB · drestA · spotC · liesD · lotC · fearE · sighsD · hereE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Fair Star of evening, Splendour of the west, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Star of my Country!--on the horizon's brink | 11 | ···/˘··˘/˘· |
| Thou hangest, stooping, as might seem, to sink | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| On England's bosom; yet well pleased to rest, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| Meanwhile, and be to her a glorious crest | 10 | /······/˘· |
| Conspicuous to the Nations. Thou, I think, | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘··· |
| Should'st be my Country's emblem; and should'st wink, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Bright Star! with laughter on her banners, drest | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| In thy fresh beauty. There! that dusky spot | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Beneath thee, that is England; there she lies. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Blessings be on you both! one hope, one lot, | 10 | /˘········ |
| One life, one glory!--I, with many a fear | 10 | ···/˘··/·· |
| For my dear Country, many heartfelt sighs, | 9 | ···/˘//·· |
| Among men who do not love her, linger here. | 11 | ········/˘· |
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.