The Naval Constructor
He looked upon the ships as theyAll idly lay at anchor,Their sides with gorgeous workmen gay--The riveter and planker--
Republicans and Democrats,Statesmen and politicians.He saw the swarm of prudent ratsSwimming for land positions.
He marked each "belted cruiser" fine,Her poddy life-belts floatingIn tether where the hungry brineImpinged upon her coating.
He noted with a proud regard,As any of his class would,The poplar mast and poplar yardAbove the hull of bass-wood.
He saw the Eastlake frigate tall,With quaintly carven gable,Hip-roof and dormer-window--allWith ivy formidable.
In short, he saw our country's hopeIn best of all conditions--Equipped, to the last spar and rope,By working politicians.
He boarded then the noblest shipAnd from the harbor glided."Adieu, adieu!" fell from his lip.Verdict: "He suicided."
Words in this poem
- gorgeous a.
- Imposing through splendid or various colors; showy; fine; magnificent. [OF. gorgias beautiful, glorious, vain, luxurious; cf. OF. gorgias ruff, neck handkerchief, and F. gorge throat, and se pengorger to assume airs. Cf. Gorge, n.]
- riveter n.
- One who rivets.
- cruiser n.
- One who, or a vessel that, cruises; -- usually an armed vessel.
- tether n.
- A long rope or chain by which an animal is fastened, as to a stake, so that it can range or feed only within certain limits. [Formerly tedder, OE. tedir; akin to LG. tider, tier, Icel. tjo, Dan. töir. *64.]
- quaintly adv.
- In a quaint manner.
- carven a.
- Wrought by carving; ornamented by carvings; carved.
- gable n.
- A cable. Chapman.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Naval Constructor 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, The Naval Constructor, in Shapes of Clay (1903), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12658, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bierce-shapes-of-clay/the-naval-constructor.html, id L28166.
Form and metre
The Naval Constructor is 28 lines in 7 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 6 of its 7 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 94%).
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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 ABAB theyA · anchorB · gayA · plankerB
- 2 ABAB democratsA · politiciansB · ratsA · positionsB
- 3 ABAB fineA · floatingB · brineA · coatingB
- 4 ABAB regardA · wouldB · yardA · woodB
- 5 AAAA tallA · gableA · allA · formidableA
- 6 ABAB hopeA · conditionsB · ropeA · politiciansB
- 7 ABAB shipA · glidedB · lipA · suicidedB
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| He looked upon the ships as they | 8 | ········ |
| All idly lay at anchor, | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| Their sides with gorgeous workmen gay-- | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| The riveter and planker-- | 7 | ·/˘˘··· |
| Republicans and Democrats, | 7 | ˘/˘·/˘· |
| Statesmen and politicians. | 7 | /˘··˘/˘ |
| He saw the swarm of prudent rats | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Swimming for land positions. | 7 | /˘··˘/˘ |
| He marked each "belted cruiser" fine, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Her poddy life-belts floating | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| In tether where the hungry brine | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Impinged upon her coating. | 7 | ˘/···/˘ |
| He noted with a proud regard, | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| As any of his class would, | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| The poplar mast and poplar yard | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Above the hull of bass-wood. | 7 | ······· |
| He saw the Eastlake frigate tall, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| With quaintly carven gable, | 7 | ·/˘/˘/˘ |
| Hip-roof and dormer-window--all | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| With ivy formidable. | 7 | ·/˘/˘˘˘ |
| In short, he saw our country's hope | 8 | ····//˘· |
| In best of all conditions-- | 7 | ····˘/˘ |
| Equipped, to the last spar and rope, | 8 | ˘/······ |
| By working politicians. | 7 | ·/˘·˘/˘ |
| He boarded then the noblest ship | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| And from the harbor glided. | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| "Adieu, adieu!" fell from his lip. | 8 | ˘/˘/···· |
| Verdict: "He suicided." | 7 | /˘·/˘·˘ |
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.