Toomai of the Elephants

Rudyard Kipling 1865 (Mumbai) – 1936 (London)



I will remember what I was. I am sick of rope and chain--
I will remember my old strength and all my forest-affairs.
I will not sell my back to man for a bundle of sugarcane.
I will go out to my own kind, and the wood-folk in their lairs.

I will go out until the day, until the morning break,
Out to the winds 'untainted kiss, the waters' clean caress.
I will forget my ankle-ring and snap my picket-stake.
I will revisit my lost loves, and playmates masterless!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 25, 2023

27 sec read
441

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABAB CXCB
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 463
Words 91
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 4, 4

Rudyard Kipling

Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English short-story writer, poet, and novelist chiefly remembered for his tales and poems of British soldiers in India and his tales for children. more…

All Rudyard Kipling poems | Rudyard Kipling Books

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