16 pages • 32 minutes read
Naomi Long MadgettLife
Naomi Long MadgettFiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1993A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Form and Meter
The poem is a single stanza of six lines, and it does not feature any set rhyme or meter. Each line ends with a different consonant or vowel sound, and there is no consistency in each line as to the stressed and unstressed syllables. The shift back and forth between the longer lines and the shorter lines mimics the swinging movement of the pocket watch in the poem. The abrupt shifts between syllable counts also reflect the uncertainty and unknown qualities of life; life can change in an instant without warning. Lastly, the fact that the poem ends with the two shortest lines (as far as syllable count) and begins with the longest line symbolizes the waning of life as it runs its course, becoming ever shorter as one day follows another.
The lack of rhyme scheme adds to the unpredictability of the poem and the overall theme of life’s oscillations. The altering patterns of stressed/unstressed syllables imitate colloquial speech and the natural flow of life, rather than the lines and words filling a particular format that might be restrictive or limiting given the topic of the poem. For example, the first line seems to follow more of a trochaic pattern, featuring a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable, before switching to iambs: “Life is but a toy that swings on a bright Plus, gain access to 8,650+ more expert-written Study Guides. Including features:
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