Analysis of The Plaint Of The Camel
Charles Edward Carryl 1841 (New York) – 1920
Canary-Birds feed on sugar and seed,
Parrots have crackers to crunch:
And, as for the poodles, they tell me the noodles
Have chickens and cream for their lunch.
But there's never a question
About MY digestion—
Anything does for me!
'Cats, you're aware, can repose in a chair,
Chickens can roost upon rails;
Puppies are able to sleep in a stable,
And oysters can slumber in pails.
But no one supposes
A poor Camel dozes—
Any place does for me!
'Lambs are enclosed where it's never exposed,
Coops are constructed for hens:
Kittens are treated to houses well heated,
And pigs are protected by pens.
But a Camel comes handy
Wherever it's sandy—
Anywhere does for me!
'People would laugh if you rode a giraffe,
Or mounted the back of an ox;
It's nobody's habit to ride on a rabbit,
Or try to bestraddle a fox.
But as for a Camel, he's
Ridden by families—
Any load does for me!
'A snake is as round as a hole in the ground,
And weasels are wavy and sleek;
And no alligator could ever be straighter
Than lizards that live in a creek,
But a Camel's all lumpy
And bumpy and humpy—
Any shape does for me!'
Scheme | XAXABBC XDXDEEC XFXFCCC XGXGHHC XIXICXC |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 0101111001 1011011 011010111010 11001111 1110010 011010 10111 1101101001 1011011 10110110010 01011001 111010 011010 101111 1101111001 1101011 10110110110 01101011 1010110 010110 10111 1011111001 11001111 1110111010 111101 1110101 101100 101111 01111101001 01011001 01100110110 11011001 1010110 01001 101111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,079 |
Words | 208 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 7, 7, 7, 7 |
Lines Amount | 35 |
Letters per line (avg) | 24 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 169 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 41 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 02, 2023
- 1:04 min read
- 187 Views
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"The Plaint Of The Camel" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/5089/the-plaint-of-the-camel>.
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