Contentment
Sleep fell upon my senses and I dreamedLong years had circled since my life had fled.The world was different, and all things seemedRemote and strange, like noises to the dead.And one great Voice there was; and something said:"Posterity is speaking--rightly deemedInfallible:" and so I gave attention,Hoping Posterity my name would mention.
"Illustrious Spirit," said the Voice, "appear!While we confirm eternally thy fame,Before our dread tribunal answer, here,Why do no statues celebrate thy name,No monuments thy services proclaim?Why did not thy contemporaries rearTo thee some schoolhouse or memorial college?It looks almighty queer, you must acknowledge."
Up spake I hotly: "That is where you err!"But some one thundered in my ear: "You shan'tBe interrupting these proceedings, sir;The question was addressed to General Grant."Some other things were spoken which I can'tDistinctly now recall, but I infer,By certain flushings of my cheeks and forehead,Posterity's environment is torrid.
Then heard I (this was in a dream, remark)Another Voice, clear, comfortable, strong,As Grant's great shade, replying from the dark,Said in a tone that rang the earth along,And thrilled the senses of the Judges' throng:"I'd rather you would question why, in parkAnd street, my monuments were not erectedThan why they were." Then, waking, I reflected.
Words in this poem
- circled a.
- Having the form of a circle; round.
- rightly adv.
- Straightly; directly; in front. [AS. richtlice.]
- eternally adv.
- In an eternal manner.
- schoolhouse n.
- A house appropriated for the use of a school or schools, or for instruction.
- hotly adv.
- In a hot or fiery manner; ardently; vehemently; violently; hastily; as, a hotly pursued. [From Hot, a.]
- infer v. t.
- To bring on; to induce; to occasion. Harvey. [L. inferre to bring into, bring forward, occasion, infer; pref. in- in + ferre to carry, bring: cf. F. inférer. See 1 st Bear.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Contentment is in the public domain. This text is taken from Shapes of Clay (1903), Project Gutenberg ebook #12658; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Ambrose Bierce, Contentment, in Shapes of Clay (1903), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12658, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bierce-shapes-of-clay/contentment.html, id L28082.
Form and metre
Contentment is 32 lines in 4 stanzas of 8 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABABBACC. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%).
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 ABABBACC dreamedA · fledB · seemedA · deadB · saidB · deemedA · attentionC · mentionC
- 2 ABABBACC appearA · fameB · hereA · nameB · proclaimB · rearA · collegeC · acknowledgeC
- 3 ABABBACC errA · shan'tB · sirA · grantB · can'tB · inferA · foreheadC · torridC
- 4 ABABBACC remarkA · strongB · darkA · alongB · throngB · parkA · erectedC · reflectedC
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Sleep fell upon my senses and I dreamed | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Long years had circled since my life had fled. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| The world was different, and all things seemed | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| Remote and strange, like noises to the dead. | 10 | ˘/···/˘··· |
| And one great Voice there was; and something said: | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| "Posterity is speaking--rightly deemed | 10 | ˘/˘˘·/˘/˘· |
| Infallible:" and so I gave attention, | 11 | ˘/˘˘····˘/˘ |
| Hoping Posterity my name would mention. | 11 | /˘˘/˘˘···/˘ |
| "Illustrious Spirit," said the Voice, "appear! | 10 | ˘/˘˘/···˘/ |
| While we confirm eternally thy fame, | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘˘·· |
| Before our dread tribunal answer, here, | 10 | ··/·˘/˘/˘· |
| Why do no statues celebrate thy name, | 10 | ···/·/˘··· |
| No monuments thy services proclaim? | 10 | ·/˘˘·/˘˘˘/ |
| Why did not thy contemporaries rear | 10 | ····˘/˘·˘· |
| To thee some schoolhouse or memorial college? | 11 | ···/··˘/˘/˘ |
| It looks almighty queer, you must acknowledge." | 11 | ··˘/˘···˘/˘ |
| Up spake I hotly: "That is where you err!" | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| But some one thundered in my ear: "You shan't | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Be interrupting these proceedings, sir; | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| The question was addressed to General Grant." | 10 | ·/˘·˘/·/˘· |
| Some other things were spoken which I can't | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| Distinctly now recall, but I infer, | 10 | ˘/˘·˘/··˘/ |
| By certain flushings of my cheeks and forehead, | 11 | ·/˘/˘····/˘ |
| Posterity's environment is torrid. | 11 | ˘/˘˘˘/˘˘·/˘ |
| Then heard I (this was in a dream, remark) | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Another Voice, clear, comfortable, strong, | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘˘˘· |
| As Grant's great shade, replying from the dark, | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Said in a tone that rang the earth along, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| And thrilled the senses of the Judges' throng: | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| "I'd rather you would question why, in park | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| And street, my monuments were not erected | 11 | ···/˘˘··˘/˘ |
| Than why they were." Then, waking, I reflected. | 11 | ·····/˘·˘/˘ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.