A Clock Stopped -- Not The Mantels;

This poem is a meditative exploration of time, mortality, and human insignificance, cloaked in the metaphor of a stopped clock. The tone that emerges is one of existential awe, underscored by the personification of the clock and its elements. The notion of a 'puppet bowing' and 'figures hunched with pain' imbues the inanimate clock with a sense of life and suffering, thus intensifying the reader's emotional engagement.

Structurally, the poem is composed of four quatrains with a varying rhyme scheme, which gives a sense of unpredictability, mirroring life's uncertainties. One standout literary device is the poet's use of metonymy in 'Geneva's farthest skill' -- a reference to the Swiss city known for watchmaking, signifying human attempts to control time. Similarly, the 'pendulum of snow' metaphor suggests time's fragility and transience. The 'gilded pointers'' 'cool, concernless No' to the 'shopman', symbolizing humanity, reinforces the theme of human insignificance in the face of time. Overall, the poem is a poignant reflection on the human condition, enveloped in the deceptive simplicity of a clock's mechanics.