logo

17 pages 34 minutes read

John Hollander

Swan and Shadow

John HollanderFiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1966

A 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 written in a structured form intended to replicate the shape of a swan floating on water and its reflection. Thus, the line lengths vary from one word to 15 words. The space between words and phrases varies because of the poem’s visual structure. The poem is written in free verse and does not follow regular meter. Its musicality comes from the absence of punctuation (with words flowing into each other), lyrical language, repetition, call-and-response, and internal and occasional rhyme. For example, consider the lines: “soon Yet by then a swan will have / gone Yes out of mind into what / vast / pale / hush / of a / place / past” (Lines 25-32). Here, “vast” rhymes with “past,” and there is alliteration in “pale,” “place,” and “past.” Other examples of alliteration occur with the repeated “wh” sound in “What A pale signal will appear / When Soon before its shadow fades / Where Here in this pool of opened eye” (Lines 10-12), and the stressed “r” sound in the phrase “ripples of recognition” (Line 16).

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 17 pages of this Study Guide

Plus, gain access to 8,500+ more expert-written Study Guides.

Including features:

+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools