Analysis of Hakim Kahn
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
When first I found this forest place
More years ago than I can tell,
I met a man of alien race
And came to know and like him well;
A humble hawker, spare and tall,
Dark faced, a handsome, bearded man;
And often now bush folk recall
The kindly smile of Hakim Khan.
He plied his trade in ways remote,
Where bush-wives pawed his varied stock:
A working shirt, a winter coat,
Socks, handkerchiefs, a cheap print frock.
They chaffered with him till, at eve,
With well-fed horse and well-kept van,
Sim Jackson's block, by Jackson's leave,
Served as camp for Hakim Khan.
And many a talk and many a tale
We had together long ago.
He told me of the pleasant vale
Of Kashmir, where the roses grow:
And, while he spoke, his fine, dark eyes
Saw nought of bush or hawker's van,
But other scenes and other skies
That held the dreams of Hakim Khan.
And while the meat, that his own hand
Had slain, cooked o'er the camp fire's glow,
He spoke of this new, kindly land,
And kind, good men he'd come to know,
His white teeth flashing in a grin,
He spoke of Jackson - "that nice man,
Grass for my horse." Small gifts could win
Deep gratitude for Hakim Khan.
For, when Sim Jackson lost his all
One summer while the bush-fires roared,
There came a figure, spare and tall,
And tossed a purse upon the board
A well-filled purse. "That help you on;
Mister, you pay back when you can.
You been good friend." And he was gone. . .
Such was the heart of Hakim Khan.
He long since left our forest place,
This hawker with the soft, dark eyes
This simple man of alien race
Who looked on life so simply wise.
Back in his well-loved Kashmir vale,
Where roses grow he ends his span.
And many a bush friend hopes the tale
Of dreams come true for Hakim Khan.
Scheme | ABABCDCE FGFGHDHE IJIJKDKE LJLJMDME CNCNEDXE AKAKIDIE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11111101 11011111 110111001 01110111 01010101 11010101 0101111 01011011 11110101 11111101 01010101 11000111 1111111 11110111 11011101 1111011 0100101001 11010101 11110101 11010101 01111111 1111111 11010101 11011011 01011111 1111001101 11111101 01111111 11110001 11110111 11111111 1101011 11110111 110101101 11010101 01010101 01111111 10111111 11110111 11011011 111110101 11010111 110111001 11111101 10111101 11011111 010011101 11111011 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,688 |
Words | 331 |
Sentences | 18 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 48 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 220 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 55 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:40 min read
- 107 Views
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"Hakim Kahn" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/6358/hakim-kahn>.
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