Analysis of The Little Old Lady in Lavender Silk

Dorothy Parker 1893 (Long Branch) – 1967 (New York City)



I was seventy-seven, come August,
I shall shortly be losing my bloom;
I've experienced zephyr and raw gust
And (symbolical) flood and simoom.

When you come to this time of abatement,
To this passing from Summer to Fall,
It is manners to issue a statement
As to what you got out of it all.

So I'll say, though reflection unnerves me
And pronouncements I dodge as I can,
That I think (if my memory serves me)
There was nothing more fun than a man!

In my youth, when the crescent was too wan
To embarrass with beams from above,
By the aid of some local Don Juan
I fell into the habit of love.

And I learned how to kiss and be merry- an
Education left better unsung.
My neglect of the waters Pierian
Was a scandal, when Grandma was young.

Though the shabby unbalanced the splendid,
And the bitter outmeasured the sweet,
I should certainly do as I then did,
Were I given the chance to repeat.

For contrition is hollow and wraithful,
And regret is no part of my plan,
And I think (if my memory's faithful)
There was nothing more fun than a man!


Scheme abab cdcd efeF ghgh fifi xjxj dfxF
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 1110010110 111011011 1010010011 01101 1111111010 111011011 1110110010 111111111 111101011 001011111 1111110011 111011101 0111010111 101011101 101111011 110101011 01111101101 01011001 10110101 101011011 1010010010 0010101 1110011111 011001101 101011001 001111111 01111110 111011101
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,019
Words 199
Sentences 9
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 115
Words per stanza (avg) 28
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 18, 2023

1:00 min read
266

Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. more…

All Dorothy Parker poems | Dorothy Parker Books

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