“Stars” Introduction

• Read the full text of “Stars”

“Stars” Summary

“Stars” Themes

• 

  The Grandeur of Nature

  • See where this theme is active in the poem.

Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Stars”

• Lines 1-4

  Alone in the night
  On a dark hill
  With pines around me
  Spicy and still,

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

• Lines 5-8

  And a heaven full of stars
  Over my head,
  White and topaz
  And misty red;

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

• Lines 9-12

  Myriads with beating
  Hearts of fire
  That aeons
  Cannot vex or tire;

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

• Lines 13-16

  Up the dome of heaven
  Like a great hill,
  I watch them marching
  Stately and still,

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

• Lines 17-20

  And I know that I
  Am honored to be
  Witness
  Of so much majesty.

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

“Stars” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Imagery

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

• Metaphor

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

• Consonance

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

• Alliteration

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

• Assonance

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

• Enjambment

  

  

  

  

  Unlock with LitCharts A⁺
  • See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

“Stars” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Topaz
• Myriads
• Aeons
• Vex
• Dome
• Stately

• • See where this vocabulary word appears in the poem.

Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Stars”

• Form

• Meter

• Rhyme Scheme

“Stars” Speaker

“Stars” Setting

Literary and Historical Context of “Stars”

More “Stars” Resources

• External Resources

  • The Lyric Poem — An introduction to lyric poetry from the Academy of American Poets.

  • A Reading of the Poem — Hear the poem read aloud. 

  • More on the Author — Another summary of Teasdale's life and works, via Britannica.

  • Nature Poetry — The Academy of American Poets discusses the tradition of poets writing about nature.

  • Biography and Poems — A biography and additional Sara Teasdale poems from the Poetry Foundation.

• LitCharts on Other Poems by Sara Teasdale

  • There Will Come Soft Rains