The Stolen Child by Yeats

The Stolen Child by Yeats

The Stolen Child by WB Yeats

Rhyme is abab aabb aabb (the bb is unusual: first b has a rhyme word rhyme at the end; second b is much longer than all the other stanzas before finally landing on rhyme.)
Where dips the rocky highland u/s/u/s/u/s/u 7
Of Sleuth Wood in the lake, u/s/d/u/i/s 6
There lies a leafy island u/s/u/s/u/s/u 7
Where flapping herons wake u/s/u/s/u/s 6
The drowsy water rats; u/s/u/s/u/s 6, 3 stresses
There we’ve hid our faery vats, u/i/s/u/s/u/s 7, 3 stresses
Full of berries ls/u/s/u 4, 1 real stress
And of reddest stolen cherries. u/u/s/u/s/u/s/u 8, 3 stresses
Come away, O human child! ls/u/s/u/s/u/s 7
To the waters and the wild u/u/s/u/ls/u/s 7
With a faery, hand in hand. ls/u/s/u/s/u/s 7, 3 stresses
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand. ls/u/s/u/s/u/s/u/u/s/d/i/u/s 14, 5 stresses

Where the wave of moonlight glosses
The dim grey sands with light,
Far off by furthest Rosses
We foot it all the night,
Weaving olden dances
Mingling hands and mingling glances
Till the moon has taken flight;
To and fro we leap
And chase the frothy bubbles,
While the world is full of troubles
And is anxious in its sleep.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.

Where the wandering water gushes
From the hills above Glen-Car,
In pools among the rushes
That scarce could bathe a star,
We seek for slumbering trout
And whispering in their ears
Give them unquiet dreams;
Leaning softly out
From ferns that drop their tears
Over the young streams.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.

Away with us he’s going,
The solemn-eyed:
He’ll hear no more the lowing
Of the calves on the warm hillside
Or the kettle on the hob
Sing peace into his breast,
Or see the brown mice bob
Round and round the oatmeal chest.
For he comes, the human child,
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than he can understand.

Publication history (says Wikipedia):
December 1886 Irish Monthly in December 1886.
As part of Irish poets Poems and Ballads of Young Ireland in 1888
In Yeat’s first collection of poetry The Wanderings of Oisin in 1889, when he was 24 years old

Rhyme is abab aabb aabb (the bb is unusual: first b has a rhyme word rhyme at the end; second b is much longer than all the other stanzas before finally landing on rhyme.)
Where dips the rocky highland u/s/u/s/u/s/u 7
Of Sleuth Wood in the lake, u/s/d/u/i/s 6
There lies a leafy island u/s/u/s/u/s/u 7
Where flapping herons wake u/s/u/s/u/s 6
The drowsy water rats; u/s/u/s/u/s 6, 3 stresses
There we’ve hid our faery vats, u/i/s/u/s/u/s 7, 3 stresses
Full of berries ls/u/s/u 4, 1 real stress
And of reddest stolen cherries. u/u/s/u/s/u/s/u 8, 3 stresses
Come away, O human child! ls/u/s/u/s/u/s 7
To the waters and the wild u/u/s/u/ls/u/s 7
With a faery, hand in hand. ls/u/s/u/s/u/s 7, 3 stresses
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand. ls/u/s/u/s/u/s/u/u/s/d/i/u/s 14, 5 stresses

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