Analysis of A Different Route
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
Say you have some great objective.
Very well. Be calm, reflective;
Make no vulgar show of vigor; 'tisn't good.
Do not rush the thing directly;
But approach it circumspectly,
As a gentlemanly politician should.
Though certain consequences hinge upon the laws you make,
Your prestige in high politics rests with the road you take.
For the common sort of fellows,
With enthusiastic bellows,
Rush about and shout their schemes in ev'ry ear;
In their shirt-sleeves, toiling, fretting,
And most vulgarly a-sweating,
Quite without a thought or care how they appear.
And if they do arrive at things a trifle in advance
Their strenuous endeavors go to prove their ignorance.
Have a care for your appearance
If you claim the least adherence
To the genteel game of politics as played
By right-thinking politicians,
Who 'consider their positions'
Once a week, while common business is delayed.
And shun, O, shun that fearsome fellow eager for a spurt,
And the man who, metaphorically, labors in his shirt.
What though others rush before you?
What though busy folk ignore you?
Draw your gloves on carefully and take your stick.
Having chosen your direction,
Then proceed, with circumspection,
Stepping out with dignity - but not too quick.
If mere workers are before you, that is what you must expect;
But reflect, with satisfaction, that your route is more select.
Then, pray, have no hesitation
Should you find your destination
Is the same as that of him that humps the load
In declaring that your action
Gives you perfect satisfaction,
As you reached the place by quite another road.
Ignore his paltry claim to being first - such was his whim;
But emphasise the fact that you disdained to follow him.
Scheme | AABCCBDD EEXFFXXG GGHIIHJJ KKLMMLNN MMOMMOPP |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11111010 10111010 1110111011 11101010 10111 1010000101 1101001010111 1010110110111 10101110 1001010 1010111011 01111010 011010 10101111101 01110111010001 11000101111100 10111010 11101010 1001111011 1110010 10101010 10111010101 01111101010101 0011010010011 11101011 11101011 11111000111 10101010 1011010 10111001111 111010111111101 10110101111101 1111010 1111010 10111111101 00101110 1101010 11101110101 01110111011111 110111011101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,661 |
Words | 287 |
Sentences | 17 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 40 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 270 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 57 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:26 min read
- 72 Views
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