Analysis of His Visitor

Thomas Hardy 1840 (Stinsford) – 1928 (Dorchester, Dorset)



I come across from Mellstock while the moon wastes weaker
To behold where I lived with you for twenty years and more:
I shall go in the gray, at the passing of the mail-train,
And need no setting open of the long familiar door
As before.

The change I notice in my once own quarters!
A brilliant budded border where the daisies used to be,
The rooms new painted, and the pictures altered,
And other cups and saucers, and no cosy nook for tea
As with me.

I discern the dim faces of the sleep-wrapt servants;
They are not those who tended me through feeble hours and strong,
But strangers quite, who never knew my rule here,
Who never saw me painting, never heard my softling song
Float along.

So I don't want to linger in this re-decked dwelling,
I feel too uneasy at the contrasts I behold,
And I make again for Mellstock to return here never,
And rejoin the roomy silence, and the mute and manifold
Souls of old.


Scheme ABXBB XCXCC XDXDD XEAEE
Poetic Form
Metre 110111101110 10111111110101 11100110101011 01110101010101 101 01110011110 0101101010111 01110001010 01010100110111 111 1010110101110 111111011101001 11011101111 1101110101111 101 1111110011110 1110101010101 0110111101110 00101010001010 111
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 901
Words 173
Sentences 6
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 5, 5, 5, 5
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 36
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 179
Words per stanza (avg) 43
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 24, 2023

52 sec read
232

Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy, was not a Scottish Minister, not a Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland nor a Professor of Eccesiastical History at Edinburgh University. more…

All Thomas Hardy poems | Thomas Hardy Books

11 fans

Discuss this Thomas Hardy poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "His Visitor" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 1 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/36392/his-visitor>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    June 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    29
    days
    20
    hours
    51
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Which author is considered to be Scotland’s national poet?
    A Robert Burns
    B Danny Boyle
    C Edwin Morgan
    D Robert Louis Stevenson