Analysis of The Battle Of The Bulge
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
This year an ocean trip I took, and as I am a Scot
And like to get my money's worth I never missed a meal.
In spite of Neptune's nastiness I ate an awful lot,
Yet felt as fit as if we sailed upon an even keel.
But now that I am home again I'm stricken with disgust;
How many pounds of fat I've gained I'd rather not divulge:
Well, anyway I mean to take this tummy down or bust,
So here I'm suet-strafing in the
Battle of the Bulge.
No more will sausage, bacon, eggs provide my breakfast fare;
On lobster I will never lunch, with mounds of mayonnaise.
At tea I'll Spartanly eschew the chocolate éclair;
Roast duckling and péche melba shall not consummate my days.
No more nocturnal ice-box raids, midnight spaghetti feeds;
On slabs of pâté de foie gras I vow I won't indulge:
Let bran and cottage cheese suffice my gastronomic needs,
And lettuce be my ally in the
Battle of the Bulge.
To hell with you, ignoble paunch, abhorrent in my sight!
I gaze at your rotundity, and savage is my frown.
I'll rub you and I'll scrub you and I'll drub you day and night,
But by the gods of symmetry I swear I'll get you down.
Your smooth and smug convexity, by heck! I will subdue,
And when you tucker in again with joy will I refulge;
No longer of my toes will you obstruct my downward view . . .
With might and main I'll fight to gain the
Battle of the Bulge.
Scheme | ababcdceDfgfghdheD ijijkdkeD |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110111011101 01111101110101 0111100111101 11111111011101 11111101110101 11011111110101 1101111110111 11111000 10101 11110101011101 1101110111110 1111010101 110011101110011 1101011110101 11111111111101 1101010110101 010111000 10101 11110101010011 11111010111 11101110111101 11011100111111 11011111101 0111000111111 11011111011101 110111110 10101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,397 |
Words | 262 |
Sentences | 15 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 18, 9 |
Lines Amount | 27 |
Letters per line (avg) | 38 |
Words per line (avg) | 10 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 518 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 131 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 14, 2023
- 1:22 min read
- 167 Views
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