Analysis of A Snifter
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
After working hard all day
In the office,
How much worse on homeward way
My old cough is!
Barney's Bar is gaily lit,
Let me stop there;
Just to buck me up a bit
Have a drop there.
As I stand beside the screen
Hesitating,
I have thought of how Noreen
Will be waiting;
Baby Patsy in her lap
Gay and laughing,
While at Barney's foaming tap
I am quaffing.
Barney's Bar is mighty bright,
Looks so cheery.
Wonder what I'll drink tonight?
Gee! I'm weary.
Will I have Scotch or Rye?
Bourbon maybe . . .
Then I see with mental eye
Wife and baby.
So I say 'tis malted milk
I'll be skoffin';
Sooth my throttle sleek as silk,
Ease my coughin' . . .
Say, I love them two to death,
Sure they miss me:
With no whisky on my breath
How they'll kiss me!
Scheme | AXAXBCBC DEDEFEFE GHGHIHIH JDJDKHKH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1010111 0010 1111101 1111 1011101 1111 1111101 1011 1110101 100 1111101 1110 1010001 1010 1110101 111 1011101 1110 1011101 1110 111111 1010 1111101 1010 1111101 111 1110111 111 1111111 1111 1110111 1111 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 872 |
Words | 144 |
Sentences | 17 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 17 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 138 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 37 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 45 sec read
- 83 Views
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"A Snifter" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 6 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/31957/a-snifter>.
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