Analysis of The Progress of Poetry
Jonathan Swift 1667 (Dublin) – 1745 (Ireland)
The Farmer's Goose, who in the Stubble,
Has fed without Restraint, or Trouble;
Grown fat with Corn and Sitting still,
Can scarce get o'er the Barn-Door Sill:
And hardly waddles forth, to cool
Her Belly in the neighb'ring Pool:
Nor loudly cackles at the Door;
For Cackling shews the Goose is poor.
But when she must be turn'd to graze,
And round the barren Common strays,
Hard Exercise, and harder Fare
Soon make my Dame grow lank and spare:
Her Body light, she tries her Wings,
And scorns the Ground, and upward springs,
While all the Parish, as she flies,
Hear Sounds harmonious from the Skies.
Such is the Poet, fresh in Pay,
(The third Night's Profits of his Play;)
His Morning-Draughts 'till Noon can swill,
Among his Brethren of the Quill:
With good Roast Beef his Belly full,
Grown lazy, foggy, fat, and dull:
Deep sunk in Plenty, and Delight,
What Poet e'er could take his Flight?
Or stuff'd with Phlegm up to the Throat,
What Poet e'er could sing a Note?
Nor Pegasus could bear the Load,
Along the high celestial Road;
The Steed, oppress'd, would break his Girth,
To raise the Lumber from the Earth.
But, view him in another Scene,
When all his Drink is Hippocrene,
His Money spent, his Patrons fail,
His Credit out for Cheese and Ale;
His Two-Year's Coat so smooth and bare,
Through ev'ry Thread it lets in Air;
With hungry Meals his Body pin'd,
His Guts and Belly full of Wind;
And, like a Jockey for a Race,
His Flesh brought down to Flying-Case:
Now his exalted Spirit loaths
Incumbrances of Food and Cloaths;
And up he rises like a Vapour,
Supported high on Wings of Paper;
He singing flies, and flying sings,
While from below all Grub-street rings.
Scheme | AABBCCDX EEFFGGHH IIBBXAJJKKLLMM NNOOFFPPQQEEDXGG |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 010110010 110101110 11110101 111100111 0101111 0100011 1101101 110010111 11111111 01010101 1100101 11111101 01011101 01010101 11010111 110100101 11010101 01110111 11011111 01110101 11111101 11010101 11010001 110101111 11111101 110101101 11001101 01010101 01011111 11010101 11100101 111111 11011101 11011101 11111101 1111101 11011101 11010111 01010101 11111101 11010101 11101 01110101 010111110 11010101 11011111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,667 |
Words | 301 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 14, 16 |
Lines Amount | 46 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 321 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 75 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:33 min read
- 71 Views
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