The Humorist
Ambrose Bierce 1842 (Meigs County) – 1914 (Chihuahua)
'What is that, mother?'
'The funny man, child.
His hands are black, but his heart is mild.'
'May I touch him, mother?'
''T were foolishly done:
He is slightly touched already, my son.'
'O, why does he wear such a ghastly grin?'
'That's the outward sign of a joke within.'
'Will he crack it, mother?'
'Not so, my saint;
'T is meant for the _Saturday Livercomplaint.'
'Does he suffer, mother?'
'God help him, yes!
A thousand and fifty kinds of distress.'
'What makes him sweat so?'
'The demons that lurk
In the fear of having to go to work.'
'Why doesn't he end, then, his life with a rope?'
'Abolition of Hell has deprived him of hope.'
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 36 sec read
- 93 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABB ACC DD AXB AEE XFF GG |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 625 |
Words | 133 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 3, 3, 2, 3, 3, 3, 2 |
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"The Humorist" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/1934/the-humorist>.
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