“Believe Me, if All Those Endearing Young Charms” by Thomas Moore
Believe me, if all those endearing young charms,
Which I gaze on so fondly today,
Were to change by to-morrow, and fleet in my arms,
Like fairy-gifts fading away,
Thou wouldst still be adored, as this moment thou art.
Let thy loveliness fade as it will.
And around the dear ruin each wish of my heart
Would entwine itself verdantly still.
It is not while beauty and youth are thine own,
And thy cheeks unprofaned by a tear,
That the fervor and faith of a soul can be known,
To which time will but make thee more dear;
No, the heart that has truly loved never forgets,
But as truly loves on to the close,
As the sun-flower turns on her god, when he sets,
The same look which she turned when he rose.
Use the poem to answer the question.
Which of the following best describes the poem’s meter and its effect on the tone of the poem?
A.
A regular pattern of dactylic tetrameter creates a reassuring tone.
B.
The use of free verse creates an intimate, passionate tone.
C.
A consistent pattern of iambic pentameter creates an earnest tone.
D.
Alternating lines of anapestic trimeter and tetrameter create an encouraging tone.
E.
The arrangement of trochaic tetrameter and pentameter lines creates a sympathetic tone.
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C. A consistent pattern of iambic pentameter creates an earnest tone.
D. The arrangement of trochaic tetrameter and pentameter lines creates a sympathetic tone.
To determine the best answer, we need to analyze the meter and its effect on the tone of the poem.
Meter refers to the rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry. In this poem, there is not a regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables, and the lines do not follow a specific meter like iambic or trochaic. Therefore, option A, C, and D can be eliminated.
The poem also does not use free verse, which is a form of poetry that does not adhere to a regular meter or rhyme scheme. Therefore, option B can be eliminated.
That leaves us with option E, "The arrangement of trochaic tetrameter and pentameter lines creates a sympathetic tone."
Although the poem does not strictly follow a trochaic meter, it does have a trochee (stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable) pattern in many lines. The use of trochees contributes to the musical quality of the poem and creates a sympathetic and tender tone, which aligns with the theme of enduring love expressed in the poem.
Therefore, the best answer is option E, "The arrangement of trochaic tetrameter and pentameter lines creates a sympathetic tone."