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The Annotated Edition

Comma added at end of line: by Percy Bysshe Shelley

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This isn’t your typical poem; it’s actually a list of line numbers from Shelley's longer works where a comma was added at the end of a line, likely due to scholarly or editorial notes.

Poet
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Core theme
Art
The PoemFull text

Comma added at end of line:

Percy Bysshe Shelley

40, 54, 60, 77, 78, 85, 90, 94, 107, 110, 116, 120, 123, 134, 144, 145, 154, 157, 168, 179, 183, 191, 196, 202, 203, 215, 217, 221, 224, 225, 238, 253, 254, 262, 287, 305, 307, 331, 338, 360, 375, 384, 385, 396, 432, 436, 447, 450, 451, 473, 475, 476, 511, 520, 526, 541, 582, 590, 591, 592, 593, 595, 603, 612.

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

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§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

This isn’t your typical poem; it’s actually a list of line numbers from Shelley's longer works where a comma was added at the end of a line, likely due to scholarly or editorial notes. You can think of it as a textual footnote presented in poetic form: it captures minor punctuation adjustments made by an editor to Shelley's original manuscripts or printed texts.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. 40, 54, 60, 77, 78, 85, 90, 94, 107,

    Editor's note

    The opening group of line numbers falls within a narrow range, indicating that these initial editorial changes happen often in the first major movement of the source poem. Each number represents a line where a comma—a brief pause—was added that Shelley himself didn't include.

  2. 110, 116, 120, 123, 134, 144, 145,

    Editor's note

    The gaps between numbers start to widen a bit here, suggesting the editor found fewer opportunities to make changes in this section. It's interesting that the consecutive numbers (144, 145) both show added commas, indicating that the editor thought this particular passage needed a slower pace for clarity.

  3. 154, 157, 168, 179, 183, 191, 196,

    Editor's note

    A steady, almost rhythmic flow of interventions spans about fifty lines. This regularity hints at a sustained use of complex syntax — maybe a lengthy periodic sentence or a catalog — where the editor consistently used commas to help guide the reader.

  4. 202, 203, 215, 217, 221, 224, 225,

    Editor's note

    Another pair of consecutive numbers (202, 203) followed by a tight cluster around 215–225. This concentration suggests a passage in the source text that is either dramatically punctuated or syntactically dense—one that the editor clearly believed required the most attention to detail so far.

  5. 238, 253, 254, 262, 287, 305, 307,

    Editor's note

    The numbers spread out again, jumping notably to 287 and then to 305–307. The widening gaps indicate a simpler stretch of verse, followed by another short cluster of ambiguity around the 300s.

  6. 331, 338, 360, 375, 384, 385, 396,

    Editor's note

    Another pair of consecutive numbers (384, 385) shows up. The spacing is moderate here — the editor remains engaged but not overwhelmed. The leap to 396 wraps up this group, giving a feeling of the poem progressing through a long, fairly clear section.

  7. 432, 436, 447, 450, 451, 473, 475,

    Editor's note

    Consecutive pairs return (450, 451 and 473, 475 are almost the same), and the numbers are clustering more tightly again. The later movements of the poem appear to require more editorial intervention, almost as if Shelley's syntax became more compressed or breathless toward the end.

  8. 476, 511, 520, 526, 541, 582, 590,

    Editor's note

    A significant increase from 476 to 511 highlights the longest uninterrupted section in the entire list — roughly 35 lines without any added commas. After that, the interventions start again at a consistent rate, indicating a lengthy lyrical plateau followed by a resurgence of syntactic complexity.

  9. 591, 592, 593, 595, 603, 612.

    Editor's note

    The poem concludes with its most compact section: three consecutive lines (591, 592, 593) followed by two more in rapid succession. The last number, 612, finishes the list with a period instead of a comma — the only full stop in the entire text, serving as a subtle editorial joke or a moment of closure that the list has been leading up to.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

Dry, clinical, and almost entirely impersonal at first glance — yet there's an understated obsession lurking beneath. A list of numbers can evoke the rhythm of a heartbeat monitor or a record of tiny injuries. When read as a poem, the tone conveys a meticulous care tinged with anxiety: it's as if someone is monitoring every breath Shelley took, weighing whether it was sufficient.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

The comma
The comma is the key symbol here—a mark of pause, breath, and connection. Placing one where there wasn't before is an act of interpretation: the editor chooses where Shelley's voice should take a breath, a subtle form of power over the words of a long-gone poet.
Consecutive line numbers
Pairs such as 144–145, 202–203, and 591–593 indicate sections in the source poem that are particularly dense or ambiguous. These clusters present challenges—spots where the meaning isn't straightforward, prompting the editor to step in twice consecutively.
The final period
The list concludes with a period after 612, marking the only full stop in the text. In a document filled with commas, this period serves as a subtle act of closure — the editor’s final word, signaling the end of the intervention before Shelley's poem is returned.

§06Historical context

Historical context

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) died at a young age, leaving behind manuscripts that were unfinished or incomplete. After he passed away, his wife Mary Shelley and several editors took on the task of creating reliable versions of his poems, a work that extended well into the twentieth century. Editorial notes, like this list—detailing where punctuation was added or altered—are essential to scholarly or variorum editions, where every change from the original manuscript needs to be recorded. The numbers here likely refer to lines from longer poems like *Prometheus Unbound*, *The Revolt of Islam*, or *Adonais*. This type of list straddles the line between literary scholarship and the poem itself, raising the question of where Shelley's voice ends and the editor's begins—a question that has preoccupied scholars of Shelley for over a century.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

Is this actually a poem, or is it just an editorial note?

It’s an editorial note that looks like a poem—at least in this context. It tracks line numbers where commas were added to Shelley’s text. Whether you consider it a poem really depends on your definition, but approaching it as poetry uncovers patterns, rhythms, and even a narrative arc that a plain footnote wouldn’t convey.

What is the source poem these line numbers refer to?

The text doesn't say explicitly, but with the line count hitting 612, it's reasonable to assume that the likely candidates are Shelley's longer works: Prometheus Unbound, The Revolt of Islam, or Adonais. A scholarly edition of any of these would typically include this kind of punctuation setup.

Why would an editor add commas to Shelley's lines?

Shelley's syntax tends to be long, winding, and intentionally breathless. Editors insert commas to help modern readers navigate complex clauses, clarify which phrases modify others, or align the punctuation with the conventions of specific editions. These decisions are subjective, and opinions on each choice can vary.

Does adding a comma change the meaning of a poem?

Yes, it can. A comma indicates to the reader when to pause and how to group words together. By adjusting the pause, you can change which word modifies which, shift the emotional tone of a line, or alter the pace at which the reader experiences an image. In poetry, punctuation contributes to the overall rhythm and music.

What is a variorum edition?

A variorum edition is a scholarly text that brings together all known versions of a work—various manuscript versions, different printed editions, and the editorial changes made throughout history. The aim is to provide readers with a comprehensive view of how the text has changed over time. A list like this would typically be found in the textual notes of that edition.

Why do consecutive line numbers (like 591, 592, 593) appear at the end?

Consecutive numbers indicate a section where the syntax becomes particularly dense or unclear — such as a long sentence, a list, or a moment of heightened rhetorical intensity where the editor believed the reader needed assistance with nearly every line. The grouping at the end of the list suggests that the original poem leads to a notably intricate conclusion.

What does it mean that the list ends with a period instead of a comma?

Every other line in this list ends with a comma, which feels appropriate considering the topic. The period after 612 is the only full stop in the whole text. It signifies the end of the editorial record — the last intervention — and provides the list with a subtle sense of closure that a trailing comma wouldn't convey.

How does this relate to questions about authorship?

Every added comma reflects a bit of co-authorship. The editor decides how Shelley's poem should sound and be interpreted. Given that Shelley passed away at 29 and couldn't oversee his own editions, his texts have always been influenced by others. This list brings that hidden labor to light.

Citation

Cite this poem

MLA

Shelley, Percy Bysshe. "Comma added at end of line:." Storgy, https://storgy.com/poems/comma-added-at-end-of-line-percy-bysshe-shelley/.

APA

Shelley, P. B. (n.d.). Comma added at end of line:. Storgy. https://storgy.com/poems/comma-added-at-end-of-line-percy-bysshe-shelley/

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