Analysis of There Was One
Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)
There was one a-riding grand
On a tall brown mare,
And a fine gold band
He brought me there.
A little, gold band
He held to me
That would shine on a hand
For the world to see.
There was one a-walking swift
To a little, new song,
And a rose was the gift
He carried along,
First of all the posies,
Dewy and red.
They that have roses
Never need bread.
There was one with a swagger
And a soft, slow tongue,
And a bright, cold dagger
Where his left hand swung-
Craven and gilt,
Old and bad-
And his stroking of the hilt
Set a girl mad.
There was one a-riding grand
As he rode from me.
And he raised his golden band
And he threw it in the sea.
There was one a-walking slow
To a sad, Iong sigh.
And his rose drooped low,
And he flung it down to die.
There was one with a swagger
And a little, sharp pride,
And a bright, cold dagger
Ever at his side.
At his side it stayed
When he ran to part.
What is this blade
Struck through my heart?
Scheme | Abab acac dede fgfg HiHi jkjk Acac lmlm HnHn opop |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain |
Metre | 1110101 10111 00111 1111 01011 1111 111101 10111 1110101 101011 001101 11001 11101 1001 11110 1011 1111010 00111 001110 11111 1001 101 0110101 1011 1110101 11111 0111101 0111001 1110101 10111 01111 0111111 1111010 001011 001110 10111 11111 11111 1111 1111 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 938 |
Words | 194 |
Sentences | 13 |
Stanzas | 10 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 40 |
Letters per line (avg) | 18 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 71 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 19 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 29, 2023
- 58 sec read
- 129 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"There Was One" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/8277/there-was-one>.
Discuss this Dorothy Parker poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In