Analysis of The Silent Ones
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
I'm just an ordinary chap
Who comes home to his tea,
And mostly I don't care a rap
What people think of me;
I do my job and take my pay,
And love of peace expound;
But as I go my patient way,
--Don't push me round.
Though I respect authority
And order never flout,
When Law and Justice disagree
You can include me out.
The Welfare State I tolerate
If it is kept in bound,
But if you wish to rouse my hate
--Just push me round.
And that's the way with lots of us:
We want to feel we're free;
So labour governments we cuss
And mock at monarchy.
Yea, we are men of secret mirth,
And fury seldom sound;
But if you value peace on earth
--Don't push us round.
Scheme | ABABCDCD BEBEFDFD GBGBHDHD |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111001 111111 01011101 110111 11110111 011101 11111101 1111 11010100 010101 11010001 110111 011110 111101 11111111 1111 01011111 111111 1110011 011100 11111101 010101 11110111 1111 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 716 |
Words | 135 |
Sentences | 6 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 21 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 164 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 44 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 19, 2023
- 42 sec read
- 118 Views
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"The Silent Ones" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/32646/the-silent-ones>.
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