White Fog

By Sara Teasdale

Sonnet
Heaven-invading hills are drowned In wide moving waves of mist, Phlox before my door are wound In dripping wreaths of amethyst. Ten feet away the solid earth Changes into melting cloud, There is a hush of pain and mirth, No bird has heart to speak aloud. Here in a world without a sky, Without the ground, without the sea, The one unchanging thing is I, Myself remains to comfort me.

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Poem Details

Language: English
Keywords: Public Domain
Source: Public Domain Collection
Rights/Permissions: Public Domain
Analysis & Notes:
This twelve-line poem enacts a meditation on transience and constancy, using the natural world as a mirror for the speaker’s reflective interiority. The single stanza’s iambic meter and unrhymed lines lend a measured, almost incantatory rhythm, while the absence of end-rhyme heightens the sense of isolation. The opening lines depict a landscape blurred by mist, where hills and flowers dissolve into amorphous form, evoking a liminal space between earth and sky. The volta arrives in the final couplet, where the speaker pivots from the shifting exterior to the unchanging self, asserting identity as the sole anchor. The paradox of a world stripped of boundaries yet enriched by the speaker’s persistence lingers, suggesting that stability is not found in the environment but forged within. The poem’s quiet insistence on the I as the one unchanging thing resonates like a grounding mantra.

Understanding the Sonnet

The sonnet is one of the most enduring and celebrated forms of poetry, known for its strict structure and profound themes. With a history spanning centuries, sonnets have been used to explore love, beauty, politics, and mortality, all within the confines of just 14 lines.

Sonnets are characterized by their precise form and rhyme scheme, which vary depending on the type of sonnet. Here’s a closer look:

  • Shakespearean (English) Sonnet: Composed of three quatrains followed by a final couplet, with a rhyme scheme of ABABCDCDEFEFGG. This form often builds a complex argument or narrative, culminating in a powerful closing statement.
  • Petrarchan (Italian) Sonnet: Divided into an octave (eight lines) and a sestet (six lines), with a typical rhyme scheme of ABBAABBA for the octave, followed by various patterns in the sestet such as CDECDE or CDCDCD. The octave usually presents a problem, with the sestet providing a resolution.
  • Meter: Sonnets are traditionally written in iambic pentameter, which gives the poem a rhythmic and melodic quality that enhances its emotional impact.

The sonnet’s enduring appeal lies in its ability to condense complex emotions and ideas into a small but potent package, making it a favorite form for poets seeking to explore profound themes with precision and elegance.