Analysis of Mary Ellen
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
It's mighty quiet in the house
Since Mary Ellen quit me cold;
I've swept the hearth and fed the mouse
That's getting fat and overbold.
I've bought a pig's foot for the pot
And soon I'll set the fire alight;
Then I may eat or I may not,
Depends upon my appetite.
Since Mary Ellen left me lone
I haven't earned a bloody bob.
I sit and sigh, and mope and moan,
And bellyache I quit my job.
My money's mostly gone,--I think
I ought to save it up for food . . .
But no, I'll blow it in for drink,
Then do a bunk for good.
I watch my mouse his whiskers preen;
He watches me with wicked glee.
Today--oh God! It's years sixteen
Since Mary Ellen wed with me.
Oh how the dear girl hated vermin!
She left rat poison on the shelf . . .
Friend Mouse, your doom I new determine
Then--how about myself?
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEFGXGX HIHIXJXJ |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11010001 11010111 11010101 110101 11011101 011101001 11111111 0101110 11010111 11010101 11010101 0101111 11010111 11111111 11111011 110111 11111101 11011101 01111101 11010111 110111010 11110101 111111010 11011 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 832 |
Words | 156 |
Sentences | 17 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 24 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 196 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 53 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 25, 2023
- 49 sec read
- 121 Views
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"Mary Ellen" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 10 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32240/mary-ellen>.
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