Analysis of Sensitive Burglar
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
Selecting in the dining-room
The silver of his choice,
The burglar heard from chamber gloom
A female voice.
As cold and bitter as a toad,
She spat a nasty name,
So even as his swag he stowed
He blushed for shame.
'You dirty dog!' he heard her say,
'I sniff your whisky stench.
I bet you've gambled half your pay,
Or blown it on a wench.
Begone from here, you rakehell boor!
You shame the human race.
What wife would pillow-share with your
Disgusting face!'
A tear the tender burglar shed,
Then indignation rose,
And swiftly striding to her bed
He said: 'I'm none of those.
I am a connoisseur in crime
And felonies I plan . . .
But otherwise, believe me I'm
A GENTLEMAN.'
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEFXGXG HIHIJXJX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 01000101 010111 01011101 011 11010101 110101 11011111 1111 11011101 111101 11110111 111101 111111 110101 11110111 0101 01010101 10101 01010101 111111 1100101 010011 1100111 0100 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 775 |
Words | 128 |
Sentences | 14 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 21 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 170 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 42 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 38 sec read
- 41 Views
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"Sensitive Burglar" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32430/sensitive-burglar>.
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