Summary

A girl is dancing with a prince at a glamorous ball. All around them, other couples and partygoers are dancing in the refracted candlelight. They seem as though they’re in a dream, following an ancient tradition. As the clock nears twelve, the girl suddenly becomes anxious and holds her prince closer. Despite the music and voices, she can hear the ticking of the clock loudest of all.

Analysis

The first stanza introduces two characters and immediately establishes the third-person narrative: “The prince leans to the girl” (Line 1). There is a juxtaposition of vivid color: scarlet, green, and silver amidst the ballroom music. These first few lines rely heavily on literary devices such as assonance, consonance, and slant rhyme; for example, the parallel vowel sounds in “leans” and “heels” (Line 1), the alliteration of “flaring in a fan” (Line 2) and the double S and R...