Analysis of A Ballad Of Buttonry
Clothes and the Man I sing. Reformers, note
These of the Subaltern who owned a Coat.
He was what veterans miscall, for short,
By that objectionable term, a wart:
The Coat an item of the 'sealed' attire
Wrung from his helpless but reluctant sire;
Also the tails were long; and, for the pride
Thereof, were buttons on the after-side;
Majestic orbs, whose gilded obverse bore
The bossy symbol of his future corps.
The youth, ere sailing for a distant land,
Did, in the interval, receive command
To join a 'Course,' where men of grave repute
Instruct the young idea how to shoot.
Thither he sped, and on the opening day
Rose, and, empanoplied in brave array,
(Ample of flowing skirt, and with great craft
And pomp of blazoned buttonry abaft)
Won to the mess, and preened his fledgling plumes
Both in the breakfast and the ante-rooms.
Awhile he moved in rapture, and awhile
Thrilled in the old, inevitable style
To that stern joy which youthful warriors feel
In wearing garments worthy of their zeal;
Then came the seneschal upon the scenes,
And knocked his infant pride to smithereens.
For out, alack! the Fathers of the mess
Strictly prohibited that form of dress,
Being by sad experience led to find
Disaster in the buttonry behind,
Which tore and scratched the leather-cushioned chairs,
And cost a perfect fortune in repairs!
It was a crushing blow. That Subaltern
Discovered that he had a lot to learn;
Removed his Coat, and laid it, weeping, in
Its long sarcophagus of beaten tin:
Buried it deep, and drew it thence no more;
Finished his Course, and sought an alien shore.
So runs the tale. I had it from the youth
Himself, and I suppose he told the truth.
(The words alone are mine; I need but hint
That his were too emotional for print.)
And as in India, though the chairs are hard,
His Coat - delicious irony - is barred;
Being designed for cooler zones, and not
For one inadequately known as 'hot';
And, furthermore, as bold Sir Fashion brings
Changes, yea, even to the soldier's things:
He questions if the Coat were worth the price,
Seeing that he will hardly wear it twice.
Scheme | AA BB CC DD EE FF GG HH XA II JJ KK LL MM NN OO PP PP EE QQ RR SS TT UU VV |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) Etheree (20%) |
Metre | 1001110101 11011101 111100111 1101000101 01110101010 11110101010 1001010101 101010101 0101110011 0101011101 0111010101 1001000101 1101111101 0101010111 1110101001 1010101 1011010111 011111 1101011101 1001000101 0111010001 1001010001 11111101001 0101010111 11010101 011101101 111010101 1001001111 10110100111 01000101 1101010101 0100110001 11010111 0101110111 0111011100 1101001101 1011011111 10110111001 1101111101 0101011101 0101111111 1101010011 01010010111 1101010011 1001110101 1101000111 010111101 1011010101 1101010101 1011110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,107 |
Words | 396 |
Sentences | 14 |
Stanzas | 25 |
Stanza Lengths | 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2 |
Lines Amount | 50 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 65 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 15 |
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Submitted on August 03, 2020
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:58 min read
- 2 Views
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"A Ballad Of Buttonry" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 4 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/55930/a-ballad-of-buttonry>.
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