Analysis of Canadian born

Emily Pauline Johnson 1861 – 1913



We first saw light in Canada, the land beloved of God;
We are the pulse of Canada, its marrow and its blood:
And we, the men of Canada, can face the world and brag
That we were born in Canada beneath the British flag.

Few of us have the blood of kings, few are of courtly birth,
But few are vagabonds or rogues of doubtful name and worth;
And all have one credential that entitles us to brag--
That we were born in Canada beneath the British flag.

We've yet to make our money, we've yet to make our fame,
But we have gold and glory in our clean colonial name;
And every man's a millionaire if only he can brag
That he was born in Canada beneath the British flag.

No title and no coronet is half so proudly worn
As that which we inherited as men Canadian born.
We count no man so noble as the one who makes the brag
That he was born in Canada beneath the British flag.

The Dutch may have their Holland, the Spaniard have his Spain,
The Yankee to the south of us must south of us remain;
For not a man dare lift a hand against the men who brag
That they were born in Canada beneath the British flag.


Scheme xxaA bbaA ccaA ddaA eeaa
Poetic Form Quatrain  (80%)
Metre 11110100010111 11011100110011 01011100110101 11010100010101 11110111111101 11110011110101 01110101010111 11010100010101 111110101111101 1111010010101001 01001001110111 11110100010101 11001101111101 111101001101001 11111101011101 11110100010101 0111110010111 01010111111101 11011101010111 11010100010101
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 1,105
Words 221
Sentences 7
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 43
Words per line (avg) 11
Letters per stanza (avg) 171
Words per stanza (avg) 44
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 13, 2023

1:07 min read
134

Emily Pauline Johnson

Emily Pauline Johnson Tekahionwake commonly known as E Pauline Johnson or just Pauline Johnson was a Canadian writer and performer popular in the late 19th century Pauline Johnson was notable for her poems and performances that celebrated her aboriginal heritage One such poem is the frequently anthologized The Song My Paddle Sings Her poetry was published in Canada the United States and Great Britain Johnson was one of a generation of widely read writers who began to define a Canadian national literature more…

All Emily Pauline Johnson poems | Emily Pauline Johnson Books

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