The Poet
The poet does the prophet's deeds;In times of need with new life pregnant,When strife and suffering are regnant,His faith with light ideal leads.The past its heroes round him posts,He rallies now the present's hosts,The future opesBefore his eyes,Its pictured hopesHe prophesies.Ever his people's forces vernalThe poet frees,--by right eternal.
He turns the people's trust to doubtOf heathendom and Moloch-terror;'Neath thought of God, cold-gray with error,He sees grow green each fresh, new sprout.Set free, these spread abroad, above,Bear fruit of power and of loveIn each man's soul,And make it warmAnd make it whole,In wrath transform,Till light and courage fill the nation:In life is God's best revelation.
Away the kingly cloak he tearsAnd on the people's shoulder places,So it no more need make grimacesTo borrowed clothes some highness wears,But be itself its majestyIn right of spirit-dynasty,In saga's lightOn heart and brain,In men of mightFrom its loins ta'en,In will unbiased and unbroken,In manly deed and bold word spoken.
His songs the nation's sins chastise,He hates a lie, as truth's high teacher(No Sunday-, but a weekday-preacher,Who, suffering, still the wrong defies).Against false peace he plies his lance,'Gainst cowardice and ignorance,--No bribe he knowsFrom nation's handNor king's command;But his way goes.And when he wavers, sorrow scourgesHis heart and free of passion purges.
He is a brother of the small,Of women, as of all who suffer,The new and weak, when waves grow rougher,He steers, till fairer breezes fall.Greater he grows without his willBy deeds his calling to fulfil,And near the tombTo God he sighs,That soon may riseA richer bloomTo deck his people's soul with flowersOf beauty far beyond his powers.
Words in this poem
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- regnant a.
- Exercising regal authority; reigning; as, a queen regnant. [L. regnans, -antis, p. pr. of regnare to reign: cf. F régnant. See Reign.]
- pictured a.
- Furnished with pictures; represented by a picture or pictures; as, a pictured scene.
- heathendom n.
- That part of the world where heathenism prevails; the heathen nations, considered collectively. [AS. hæedhendom.]
- highness n.
- The state of being high; elevation; loftiness. [AS. heáhnes.]
- unbiased a.
- Free from bias or prejudice; unprejudiced; impartial. [Pref. un- + biased.]
- bribe n.
- A gift begged; a present. [F. bribe a lump of bread, scraps, leavings of meals (that are generally given to a beggar), LL. briba scrap of bread; cf. OF. briber, brifer, to eat gluttonousl]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Poet is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems and Songs, Project Gutenberg ebook #6619, the Arthur Hubbell Palmer translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, The Poet, in Poems and Songs (1915), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #6619, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bjornson-poems-and-songs/the-poet.html, id L29344.
Form and metre
The Poet is 60 lines in 5 stanzas of 12 lines each. The commonest rhyme scheme is ABBACCDEDEFF, in 2 of the 5 stanzas; the rest vary or could not be confirmed. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%).
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 ABBACCDEDEFF deedsA · pregnantB · regnantB · leadsA · postsC · hostsC · opesD · eyesE · hopesD · prophesiesE · vernalF · eternalF
- 2 ABBACCDEDEFF doubtA · terrorB · errorB · sproutA · aboveC · loveC · soulD · warmE · wholeD · transformE · nationF · revelationF
- 3 A--A--BCB-CC tearsA · places · grimaces · wearsA · majesty · dynasty · lightB · brainC · mightB · ta'en · unbrokenC · spokenC
- 4 ABBACCDEEDFF chastiseA · teacherB · preacherB · defiesA · lanceC · ignoranceC · knowsD · handE · commandE · goesD · scourgesF · purgesF
- 5 ABBA--CDDCEE smallA · sufferB · rougherB · fallA · will · fulfil · tombC · sighsD · riseD · bloomC · flowersE · powersE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| The poet does the prophet's deeds; | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| In times of need with new life pregnant, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| When strife and suffering are regnant, | 9 | ···/˘˘·/˘ |
| His faith with light ideal leads. | 7 | ····˘/· |
| The past its heroes round him posts, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| He rallies now the present's hosts, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| The future opes | 4 | ·/˘· |
| Before his eyes, | 4 | ···· |
| Its pictured hopes | 4 | ·/˘· |
| He prophesies. | 4 | ·/˘˘ |
| Ever his people's forces vernal | 9 | /˘·/˘/˘/˘ |
| The poet frees,--by right eternal. | 9 | ·/˘···˘/˘ |
| He turns the people's trust to doubt | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Of heathendom and Moloch-terror; | 9 | ·/˘˘·/˘/˘ |
| 'Neath thought of God, cold-gray with error, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| He sees grow green each fresh, new sprout. | 8 | ········ |
| Set free, these spread abroad, above, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| Bear fruit of power and of love | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| In each man's soul, | 4 | ···· |
| And make it warm | 4 | ···· |
| And make it whole, | 4 | ···· |
| In wrath transform, | 4 | ··˘/ |
| Till light and courage fill the nation: | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| In life is God's best revelation. | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| Away the kingly cloak he tears | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| And on the people's shoulder places, | 9 | ···/˘/˘/˘ |
| So it no more need make grimaces | 9 | ······/˘˘ |
| To borrowed clothes some highness wears, | 8 | ·/···/˘· |
| But be itself its majesty | 8 | ··˘/·/˘˘ |
| In right of spirit-dynasty, | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| In saga's light | 4 | ·/˘· |
| On heart and brain, | 4 | ···· |
| In men of might | 4 | ···· |
| From its loins ta'en, | 4 | ···· |
| In will unbiased and unbroken, | 9 | ···/˘·˘/˘ |
| In manly deed and bold word spoken. | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
| His songs the nation's sins chastise, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| He hates a lie, as truth's high teacher | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| (No Sunday-, but a weekday-preacher, | 9 | ·/···/·/˘ |
| Who, suffering, still the wrong defies). | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| Against false peace he plies his lance, | 8 | ········ |
| 'Gainst cowardice and ignorance,-- | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘˘ |
| No bribe he knows | 4 | ···· |
| From nation's hand | 4 | ·/˘· |
| Nor king's command; | 4 | ··˘/ |
| But his way goes. | 4 | ···· |
| And when he wavers, sorrow scourges | 9 | ···/˘/˘/˘ |
| His heart and free of passion purges. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| He is a brother of the small, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Of women, as of all who suffer, | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
| The new and weak, when waves grow rougher, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| He steers, till fairer breezes fall. | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Greater he grows without his will | 8 | /˘······ |
| By deeds his calling to fulfil, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And near the tomb | 4 | ···· |
| To God he sighs, | 4 | ···· |
| That soon may rise | 4 | ···· |
| A richer bloom | 4 | ·/˘· |
| To deck his people's soul with flowers | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| Of beauty far beyond his powers. | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
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.