Analysis of Dunce
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
At school I never gained a prize,
Proving myself the model ass;
Yet how I watched the wistful eyes,
And cheered my mates who topped the class.
No envy in my heart I found,
Yet bone was worthier to own
Those precious books in vellum bound,
Than I, a dreamer and a drone.
No prize at school I ever gained
(Shirking my studies, I suppose):
Yes, I remember being caned
For lack of love of Latin prose.
For algebra I won no praise,
In grammar I was far from bright:
Yet, oh, how Poetry would raise
In me a rapture of delight!
I never gained a prize at school;
The dullard's cap adorned my head;
My masters wrote me down a fool,
And yet - I'm sorry they are dead.
I'd like to go to them and say:
"Yours is indeed a tricky trade.
My honoured classmates, where are they?
Yet I, the dunce, brave books have made."
Oh, I am old and worn and grey,
And maybe have not long to live;
Yet 'tis my hope at some Prize Day
At my old school the Head will give
A tome or two of mine to crown
Some pupil's well-deserved success -
Proving a scapegrace and a clown
May win at last to worthiness.
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEFGHGH IJIJKLKL KXKXMXMX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110101 1010101 11110101 01111101 11001111 11110011 1101011 11010001 11111101 10110101 11010101 11111101 11001111 01011111 11110011 01010101 11010111 0110111 11011101 01110111 11111101 11010101 111111 11011111 11110101 01011111 11111111 11110111 01111111 1110101 1001001 11111100 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,049 |
Words | 217 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 25 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 204 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 54 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 03, 2023
- 1:06 min read
- 62 Views
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"Dunce" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32090/dunce>.
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