Analysis of The Rhyme Of The Restless Ones
We couldn't sit and study for the law;
The stagnation of a bank we couldn't stand;
For our riot blood was surging, and we didn't need much urging
To excitements and excesses that are banned.
So we took to wine and drink and other things,
And the devil in us struggled to be free;
Till our friends rose up in wrath, and they pointed out the path,
And they paid our debts and packed us o'er the sea.
Oh, they shook us off and shipped us o'er the foam,
To the larger lands that lure a man to roam;
And we took the chance they gave
Of a far and foreign grave,
And we bade good-by for evermore to home.
And some of us are climbing on the peak,
And some of us are camping on the plain;
By pine and palm you'll find us, with never claim to bind us,
By track and trail you'll meet us once again.
We are the fated serfs to freedom -- sky and sea;
We have failed where slummy cities overflow;
But the stranger ways of earth know our pride and know our worth,
And we go into the dark as fighters go.
Yes, we go into the night as brave men go,
Though our faces they be often streaked with woe;
Yet we're hard as cats to kill,
And our hearts are reckless still,
And we've danced with death a dozen times or so.
And you'll find us in Alaska after gold,
And you'll find us herding cattle in the South.
We like strong drink and fun, and, when the race is run,
We often die with curses in our mouth.
We are wild as colts unbroke, but never mean.
Of our sins we've shoulders broad to bear the blame;
But we'll never stay in town and we'll never settle down,
And we'll never have an object or an aim.
No, there's that in us that time can never tame;
And life will always seem a careless game;
And they'd better far forget --
Those who say they love us yet --
Forget, blot out with bitterness our name.
Scheme | XAXAXBXB CCDDC XXXX BEXE EEFFE XGXGXHXH HHIIH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101010101 00101011101 11010111001101110 11010111 11111010101 00100110111 110111010110101 0111010111001 111110111001 10101110111 0110111 1010101 0111111011 0111110101 0111110101 11011111101111 1101111101 110101110101 111111010 1010111110101101 01101011101 11101011111 110101110111 1111111 01011101 01111010111 01110010101 01111010001 111101010111 11011100101 1111111101 110111011101 11101010110101 01101110111 11101111101 011110101 0110101 1111111 01111100101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,824 |
Words | 359 |
Sentences | 12 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 5, 4, 4, 5, 8, 5 |
Lines Amount | 39 |
Letters per line (avg) | 35 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 194 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 51 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 24, 2023
- 1:52 min read
- 153 Views
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"The Rhyme Of The Restless Ones" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32632/the-rhyme-of-the-restless-ones>.
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