To a Summer Poet
Yes, the Summer girl is flirting on the beach,With a him.And the damboy is a-climbing for the peach,On the limb;Yes, the bullfrog is a-croakingAnd the dudelet is a-smokingCigarettes;And the hackman is a-hackingAnd the showman is a-crackingUp his pets;Yes, the Jersey 'skeeter flits along the shoreAnd the snapdog--we have heard it o'er and o'er;Yes, my poet,Well we know it--Know the spooners how they spoonIn the brightDollar lightOf the country tavern moon;Yes, the caterpillars fallFrom the trees (we know it all),And with beetles all the shelvesAre alive.
Please unbuttonhole us--O,Have the grace to let us go,For we knowHow you Summer poets thrive,By the recapitulationAnd insistent iterationOf the wondrous doings incident to Life AmongOurselves!So, I pray you stop the fervor and the fuss.For you, poor human linnet,There's a half a living in it,But there's not a copper cent in it for us!
Words in this poem
- bullfrog n.
- A very large species of frog (Rana Catesbiana), found in North America; -- so named from its loud bellowing in spring.
- hackman n.
- The driver of a hack or carriage for public hire.
- showman n.
- One who exhibits a show; a proprietor of a show.
- recapitulation n.
- The act of recapitulating; a summary, or concise statement or enumeration, of the principal points, facts, or statements, in a preceding discourse, argument, or essay. [LL. recapitulatio: cf. F. recapitulation.]
- insistent a.
- Standing or resting on something; as, an insistent wall. Sir H. [L. insistens, -entis, p. pr. of insistere.]
- iteration n.
- Recital or performance a second time; repetition. [L. iteratio.]
- wondrous adv.
- In a wonderful or surprising manner or degree; wonderfully. [OE. wonders, adv. (later also adj.). See Wonder, n., and cf. -wards.]
- fervor n.
- Heat; excessive warmth. [OF. fervor, fervour, F. ferveur, L. fervor, fr. fervere. See Fervent.]
- fuss n.
- A tumult; a bustle; unnecessary or annoying ado about trifles. [Cf. Fusome.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
To a Summer Poet 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, To a Summer Poet, in Shapes of Clay (1903), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12658, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bierce-shapes-of-clay/to-a-summer-poet.html, id L28002.
Form and metre
To a Summer Poet is 34 lines in 2 stanzas. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic pentameter.
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 ABABCCDEED--FFGHHGII-- beachA · himB · peachA · limbB · croakingC · smokingC · cigarettesD · hackingE · crackingE · petsD · shore · o'er · poetF · itF · spoonG · brightH · lightH · moonG · fallI · allI · shelves · alive
- 2 AAA-BB--CDDC oA · goA · knowA · thrive · recapitulationB · iterationB · among · ourselves · fussC · linnetD · itD · usC
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Yes, the Summer girl is flirting on the beach, | 11 | ··/˘··/˘··· |
| With a him. | 3 | ··· |
| And the damboy is a-climbing for the peach, | 11 | ······/˘··· |
| On the limb; | 3 | ··· |
| Yes, the bullfrog is a-croaking | 8 | ··/···/˘ |
| And the dudelet is a-smoking | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Cigarettes; | 3 | ·˘/ |
| And the hackman is a-hacking | 8 | ··/···/˘ |
| And the showman is a-cracking | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Up his pets; | 3 | ··· |
| Yes, the Jersey 'skeeter flits along the shore | 11 | ··/˘/˘·˘/·· |
| And the snapdog--we have heard it o'er and o'er; | 11 | ··········· |
| Yes, my poet, | 4 | ··/˘ |
| Well we know it-- | 4 | ···· |
| Know the spooners how they spoon | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| In the bright | 3 | ··· |
| Dollar light | 3 | /˘· |
| Of the country tavern moon; | 7 | ··/˘/˘· |
| Yes, the caterpillars fall | 7 | ··/˘·˘· |
| From the trees (we know it all), | 7 | ······· |
| And with beetles all the shelves | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Are alive. | 3 | ·˘/ |
| Please unbuttonhole us--O, | 8 | ········ |
| Have the grace to let us go, | 7 | ······· |
| For we know | 3 | ··· |
| How you Summer poets thrive, | 7 | ··/˘/˘· |
| By the recapitulation | 8 | ········ |
| And insistent iteration | 8 | ·˘/˘···· |
| Of the wondrous doings incident to Life Among | 12 | ··/˘/˘/˘···· |
| Ourselves! | 3 | ˘˘/ |
| So, I pray you stop the fervor and the fuss. | 11 | ······/˘··· |
| For you, poor human linnet, | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| There's a half a living in it, | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| But there's not a copper cent in it for us! | 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.