Analysis of My Jolly Friend's Secret
James Whitcomb Riley 1849 (Greenfield) – 1916 (Indianapolis)
Ah, friend of mine, how goes it,
Since you've taken you a mate?--
Your smile, though, plainly shows it
Is a very happy state!
Dan Cupid's necromancy!
You must sit you down and dine,
And lubricate your fancy
With a glass or two of wine.
And as you have 'deserted,'
As my other chums have done,
While I laugh alone diverted,
As you drop off one by one--
And I've remained unwedded,
Till--you see--look here--that I'm,
In a manner, 'snatched bald-headed'
By the sportive hand of Time!
I'm an 'old 'un!' yes, but wrinkles
Are not so plenty, quite,
As to cover up the twinkles
Of the BOY--ain't I right?
Yet, there are ghosts of kisses
Under this mustache of mine
My mem'ry only misses
When I drown 'em out with wine.
From acknowledgment so ample,
You would hardly take me for
What I am--a perfect sample
Of a 'jolly bachelor';
Not a bachelor has being
When he laughs at married life
But his heart and soul's agreeing
That he ought to have a wife!
Ah, ha I old chum, this claret,
Like Fatima, holds the key
Of the old Blue-Beardish garret
Of my hidden mystery!
Did you say you'd like to listen?
Ah, my boy! the 'SAD NO MORE!'
And the tear-drops that will glisten--
TURN THE CATCH UPON THE DOOR,
And sit you down beside me,
And put yourself at ease--
I'll trouble you to slide me
That wine decanter, please;
The path is kind o' mazy
Where my fancies have to go,
And my heart gets sort o' lazy
On the journey--don't you know?
Let me see--when I was twenty--
It's a lordly age, my boy,
When a fellow's money's plenty,
And the leisure to enjoy--
And a girl--with hair as golden
As--THAT; and lips--well--quite
As red as THIS I'm holdin'
Between you and the light.
And eyes and a complexion--
Ah, heavens!--le'-me-see--
Well,--just in this connection,--
DID YOU LOCK THAT DOOR FOR ME?
Did I start in recitation
My past life to recall?
Well, THAT'S an indication
I am purty tight--that's all!
Scheme | ABABCDCD EFEFAGXG HIHIJDJD KLKXMNMN ACACFLFL COCOCPCP CQCQFIDI FCFCFRFR |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111111 1110101 1111011 1010101 11100 1111101 010110 1011111 0111010 1110111 11101010 1111111 01011 1111111 00101110 101111 11111110 111101 11101010 101111 1111110 101111 111010 1111111 10100110 1110111 11100110 1010100 10100110 1111101 11101010 1111101 1111111 1100101 1011110 1110100 11111110 1110111 00111110 1010101 0111011 010111 1101111 1111 011111 1110111 01111110 1010111 11111110 101111 10101010 0010101 00111110 110111 111111 011001 0100010 110111 1101010 1111111 1110010 11111 111010 111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,826 |
Words | 355 |
Sentences | 20 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 64 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 175 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 43 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:51 min read
- 43 Views
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"My Jolly Friend's Secret" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 8 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/20975/my-jolly-friend%27s-secret>.
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