Analysis of To Those Born After
Bertolt Brecht 1898 (Augsburg) – 1956 (East Berlin)
To the cities I came in a time of disorder
That was ruled by hunger.
I sheltered with the people in a time of uproar
And then I joined in their rebellion.
That's how I passed my time that was given to me on this Earth.
I ate my dinners between the battles,
I lay down to sleep among the murderers,
I didn't care for much for love
And for nature's beauties I had little patience.
That's how I passed my time that was given to me on this Earth.
The city streets all led to foul swamps in my time,
My speech betrayed me to the butchers.
I could do only little
But without me those that ruled could not sleep so easily:
That's what I hoped.
That's how I passed my time that was given to me on this Earth.
Our forces were slight and small,
Our goal lay in the far distance
Clearly in our sights,
If for me myself beyond my reaching.
That's how I passed my time that was given to me on this Earth.
You who will come to the surface
From the flood that's overwhelmed us and drowned us all
Must think, when you speak of our weakness in times of darkness
That you've not had to face:
Days when we were used to changing countries
More often than shoes,
Through the war of the classes despairing
That there was only injustice and no outrage.
Even so we realised
Hatred of oppression still distorts the features,
Anger at injustice still makes voices raised and ugly.
Oh we, who wished to lay for the foundations for peace and friendliness,
Could never be friendly ourselves.
And in the future when no longer
Do human beings still treat themselves as animals,
Look back on us with indulgence.
Scheme | aaxxB cdxeB xdxfgB hexiB jhjx xxix gdfxx ace |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1010110011010 111110 110101000111 011101010 111111111011111 1111001010 11111010100 11011111 011010111010 111111111011111 010111111011 110111010 1111010 10111111111100 1111 111111111011111 10100101 101100110 100101 111101110 111111111011111 11111010 10110110111 111111101001110 111111 1110111010 11011 1011010010 11110010011 10111 101010101010 10101011101010 11111110010110100 110110001 000101110 1101011011100 11111010 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,586 |
Words | 305 |
Sentences | 15 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 5, 6, 5, 4, 4, 5, 3 |
Lines Amount | 37 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 155 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 38 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 02, 2023
- 1:34 min read
- 324 Views
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