Analysis of The Homeward Track
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
Once a year we lumber southward with the clip from Yarradee;
Spell the bullocks in the township while we run our yearly spree.
What's a bullocky to live for? Days of toil are hard and long;
And you'd not begrudge him yearly one short week of wine and song.
While it lasts he asks no better. When it's over 'Yoke 'em up,'
And we'll make another promise for to shun the brimming cup.
When we've done our little cheque in, and the township's at our back;
Then we start to think of mending - out along the Homeward Track.
For there comes a time of reck'ning when we're trudging by the team;
Back again to work an' worry; kind of waking from a dream;
We begin to see the folly of a week of wicked fun,
Bought with months of weary slaving, punching bullocks on the run.
But our views are somewhat tempered when we've done a twelve months' drouth;
And our thoughts ain't so religious when the team is heading south.
When the pleasure is before us, work and worry at our back,
We forget the grim reformers out along the Homeward Track.
What's the odds? It's got to happen. What we've done we'll do again;
And we know it while we make 'em, resolutions are in vain.
Life's a weary track to travel, mostly full of ruts and stumps:
Them that spends their days in drudging have to take their joy in lumps.
Yoke 'em up an' get a move on! Gayest times must have an end,
There's a weary track to travel when we've nothing left to spend.
If there's still a bob we'll wet it, and a last glad joke we'll crack,
Time enough for vain regretting when we're on the Homeward Track.
Scheme | AXBBCCDD EEFFGGDD XXHHAADD |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1011101010111 1010001011110101 1011111111101 011011101111101 111111101110111 011010101110101 1111010100011101 111111101010101 111011111110101 101111101110101 101110101011101 11111011010101 1101111101110111 0101110101011101 1010101110101101 101010101010101 101111101111101 01111111010101 101011101011101 11111011111101 11111011111111 101011101110111 111011110011111 101110101110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic octameter |
Characters | 1,547 |
Words | 300 |
Sentences | 17 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 50 |
Words per line (avg) | 13 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 398 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 101 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:36 min read
- 60 Views
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"The Homeward Track" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/6672/the-homeward-track>.
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