After

By Philip Bourke Marston 

‘After’ by Marston captures the eternal ache of loss, where brief joys
transition to lasting sorrow, reflecting on grief’s permanence.

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Philip Bourke Marston

Philip Bourke Marston was an English poet born in 1850.

He lost his sight at the age of three, and much of his poetry is imbued with his
impressions from his affliction.

Poems

Poem Analyzed by Sudip Das Gupta

Fi t l BA H D i E li h Lit t
 First-class B.A. Honors Degree in English Literature

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston presents words that arise from a heart,
broken and sad. It is a testimony of a person who has nothing left in his life
instead of grief. For him, the little things that once existed before have now
given way to grief only. It is not that it’s an elegy written for the poet’s lost
love. The poem presents a mixed kind of emotions that appear and fade away
in the poet’s mind. Moreover, the brevity of expression in the poem and the
repetition of the word “little” make the poem closer to the heart as it speaks
the truth! Nothing stays. What remains is the recollection of the past.

After
Philip Bourke Marston

A LITTLE time for laughter,

— A little time to sing,
— A little time to kiss and cling,
And no more kissing after.

A little while for scheming

— Love's unperfected schemes;
— A little time for golden dreams,
Then no more any dreaming.

A little while 'twas given

— To me to have thy love;
— Now, like a ghost, alone I move
About a ruined heaven.

A little time for speaking

— Things sweet to say and hear;
— A time to seek, and find thee near,
Then no more any seeking.
A little time for saying
— Words the heart breaks to say;
— A short sharp time wherein to pray,
Then no more need of praying;

But long, long years to weep in,

— And comprehend the whole
— Great grief that desolates the soul,
And eternity to sleep in.

Explore After
1 Summary

2 Structure

3 Literary Devices

4 Analysis, Stanza by Stanza

5 Historical Context

6 Similar Poetry
Summary

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston is an emotional poem that talks about

the little things that the poet longs to do.

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston talks about the poetic persona’s little wishes.
He doesn’t want anything bigger in life except for pleasant things that cheer
the heart. Likewise, in the first three stanzas, the poet talks about the lady
whom he loved. Now, she is not with the poet. For this reason, he desires
those things that once made him feel happy. In the following two stanzas, the
poet says what he really wants to say to his beloved. There is still something
left in his heart that he wants to tell her about. Moreover, in the last stanza,
the poet sighs for the “long, long” years that he has to live alone with a sad
heart. What is left in him, is the endless heartache. It will only end in eternal
sleep.

Structure
‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston consists of six four-line stanzas. The poet
employs a regular rhyme scheme in the poem and he makes use of the
closed rhyming form. It means that the first and fourth lines of each stanza
rhyme together. Whereas, the second and third lines form a rhyming couplet.
As an example, in the first stanza, “laughter” and “after” rhyme, and “sing”
rhymes with “cling”. The repetition of “A little” throughout the poem except in
the last stanza, refers to the main idea of the poem. It is no doubt about the
little things that make one cheerful.

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However, the metrical composition of the poem is interesting enough. In each
stanza, the first and fourth lines contain 7 syllables each. Whereas, the
second line and third line contain 6 and 8 syllables respectively. In this poem,
the lines having 6 and 7 syllables contain the iambic trimeter. But, the first
and fourth lines have hypermetrical endings. Moreover, the third line of each
stanza is in iambic tetrameter. However, it can be said that the poem is
composed of iambic trimeter as the majority of the lines contain this meter.

Literary Devices
‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston is a poem that has some important literary
devices to discuss. The epigrammatic sense present in each section of the
poem is also very interesting. However, in the first stanza, the first three lines
contain anaphora. The last line of this stanza is somehow paradoxical in a
sense. In the second stanza, the second line contains a personification. Here
the poet also uses a metaphor for referring to himself. However, in “golden
dreams” there is a metonymy. Here, the poet refers to the dreams that one
values the most. In the third stanza, there is a simile in the third line and here
the poet compares himself to a ghost. Whereas, in the last stanza, the poet
uses hyperbole and a metaphor as well.

In the fifth stanza, the poet uses synecdoche in the second line. Here, by
referring to “heart” the poet associates himself. There is an alliteration in the
third line of this stanza. Here, the “s” sound in “short sharp” gets repeated for
the sake of emphasis. Moreover, in the last stanza, there is a palilogy in the
use of the word “long” twice. It is no doubt a hyperbolic expression. In the
third line, “Great grief” is an example of consonance. The poet also
personifies “grief” in this line and invests it with the idea of desolating the
soul. At last, the poet uses a periphrasis or circumlocution to point to “death”.

Analysis, Stanza by Stanza

Stanza One

“ A little time for laughter,

A little time to sing,

A little time to kiss and cling,

And no more kissing after.

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston presents how the poet longs for his lady love.
The love story has ended abruptly and there is still feeling left in the poet’s
heart. The poet can imagine how they laughed and sang together. The
sensation of kissing her and clinging her closer to his heart reminds the poet
of the brevity of his relationship. He is sad because he can’t find any other
person just like her. For this reason, the poet reiterates there is “no more
kissing” after she has left.

Stanza Two

“ A little while for scheming

Love’s unperfected schemes;

A little time for golden dreams,

Then no more any dreaming.

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston presents the foolish schemes that one thinks
of to please his beloved. The poet doesn’t have enough time for scheming too
as she was there in his life for a short time. In the second line, the poet refers
to the schemes of love as “unperfected”. It is true that no matter how one
tries to perfect the plans to please his beloved, it appears imperfect in the
end. It is ironic but true.

In the last two lines, the poet refers to his dreams of the future with the lady.
According to the poet, the dreams are golden because the dreams revolve
around the lady whom the poet adores the most. The last line again reiterates
the negation for the sake of emphasizing the poet’s mental state.

Stanza Three

“ A little while ’twas given

To me to have thy love;

Now, like a ghost, alone I move

About a ruined heaven.

In the third stanza of ‘After’, the poet refers to the transience of the lady’s love.
He implicitly compares love with life and refers to the transience of both. In
the last two lines, there is a reference to the poet’s loneliness. He feels like a
formless ghost as the lady’s departure has devastated his spirit. Now, he
roams in the heaven that he created in his mind. The heaven, created with
love and care, is now in ruins. And, the poet is the guardian spirit of that
broken heaven.

Stanza Four

“ A little time for speaking

Things sweet to say and hear;

A time to seek, and find thee near,

Then no more any seeking.

In the fourth stanza of ‘After’, Marston expresses how much he longs to
speak with her. He wants to hear her words that linger in his mind and
soothes his soul. The stanza reflects how badly the poet misses the lady.
However, in the last two lines, the poet seeks her again and finds her near like
before. But, sadly he can’t. In the last line, the poet says, “Then no more any
seeking.” It means that the poet just needs a brief encounter with the lady
again and nothing more.

Stanza Five

“ A little time for saying

Words the heart breaks to say;

A short sharp time wherein to pray,

Then no more need of praying;

In the fifth stanza of ‘After’, the poet presents what he really wants to say to
his beloved. His heart is breaking as it can’t hold those words anymore there.
He has to say it anyhow. For this reason, he prays to God to make her return.
Thus the poet can unfold his heart and say what he badly wants to. He seeks
nothing else. Apart from that, there is another thing to note here the poet has
no other desires except for talking with her.

Stanza Six

“ But long, long years to weep in,

And comprehend the whole

Great grief that desolates the soul,

And eternity to sleep in.

‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston talks about the poet’s grief-stricken condition
in the last stanza. For emphasizing how sad the poet is he uses the word
“long” in the first line of this section. The poet doesn’t even get enough time
to comprehend what has gone wrong in the relationship. That’s why he says
he needs to think about his flaws and the relationship as a whole in the
upcoming years. In the last two lines, the poet refers to his desolation and
says that only eternal sleep or death can end his heartache.

Historical Context
‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston is a poem that refers to a lady who had left
the poet. The tone and mood of the poem present that the poet isn’t
aggravated about the departure. He badly misses her presence. Moreover, the
poet lost his fiancee Mary Nesbit in November 1871. So, it seems that the
poet might have addressed this poem to her.

Similar Poetry
Like ‘After’ by Philip Bourke Marston the following poems also talk about the
theme of loss and the transience of love in one’s life.

The Definition of Love by Andrew Marvell – The mental state of Andrew

Marvell in this poem is similar to that of Marston.
Heart, we will forget him! by Emily Dickinson – Here, Emily Dickinson
wants to end her heartache by forgetting the person she loved.
The Broken Heart by John Donne – Here, John Donne talks about the
power of love that destroys one’s emotions.
The Broken Heart by William Barnes – In this poem, William Barnes
presents a woman deceived in love.
You can read about 10 Incredible Poems about Death here.

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About Sudip Das Gupta

A complete expert on poetry, Sudip graduated with a first-
class B.A. Honors Degree in English Literature. He has a
passion for analyzing poetic works with a particular
emphasis on literary devices and scansion.

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