Analysis of A Preference
Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906
Mastah drink his ol' Made'a,
Missy drink huh sherry wine,
Ovahseah lak his whiskey,
But dat othah drink is mine,
Des' 'lasses an' watah, 'lasses an' watah.
Wen you git a steamin' hoe-cake
On de table, go way, man!
'D ain but one t'ing to go wid it,
'Sides de gravy in de pan,
Dat 's 'lasses an' watah, 'lasses an' watah.
W'en hit 's 'possum dat you eatin',
'Simmon beer is moughty sweet;
But fu' evahday consumin'
'D ain't no mo'tal way to beat
Des' 'lasses an' watah, 'lasses an' watah.
W'y de bees is allus busy,
An' ain' got no time to was'?
Hit's beca'se dey knows de honey
Dey 's a makin', gwine to tas'
Lak 'lasses an' watah, 'lasses an' watah.
Oh, hit 's moughty mil' an' soothin',
An' hit don' go to yo' haid;
Dat 's de reason I 's a-backin'
Up de othah wo'ds I said,
'Des 'lasses an' watah, 'lasses an' watah.'
Scheme | abcbA xdxda bebeA cfcfa bxbxa |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 111110 1011101 11110 111111 1111111 1110111 1110111 1111111111 1110011 11111111 10011110111 101111 1111 11111111 1111111 1001111110 1111111 1111110 11010111 1111111 1111111 1111111 111101101 111111 1111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 803 |
Words | 162 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 |
Lines Amount | 25 |
Letters per line (avg) | 23 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 114 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 32 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 51 sec read
- 54 Views
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"A Preference" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28629/a-preference>.
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