Instans Tyrannus
Of the million or two, more or lessI rule and possess,One man, for some cause undefined,Was least to my mind.
I struck him, he grovelled of course--For, what was his force?I pinned him to earth with my weightAnd persistence of hate:And he lay, would not moan, would not curse,As his lot might be worse.
"Were the object less mean, would he standAt the swing of my hand!For obscurity helps him and blotsThe hole where he squats."So, I set my five wits on the stretchTo inveigle the wretch.All in vain! Gold and jewels I threw,Still he couched there perdue;I tempted his blood and his flesh,Hid in roses my mesh,Choicest cates and the flagon's best spilth:Still he kept to his filth.
Had he kith now or kin, were accessTo his heart, did I press:Just a son or a mother to seize!No such booty as these.Were it simply a friend to pursue'Mid my million or two,Who could pay me in person or pelfWhat he owes me himself!No: I could not but smile through my chafe:For the fellow lay safeAs his mates do, the midge and the nit,--Through minuteness, to wit.
Then a humour more great took its placeAt the thought of his face,The droop, the low cares of the mouth,The trouble uncouth'Twixt the brows, all that air one is fainTo put out of its pain.And, "no!" I admonished myself,"Is one mocked by an elf,Is one baffled by toad or by rat?The gravamen's in that!How the lion, who crouches to suitHis back to my foot,Would admire that I stand in debate!But the small turns the greatIf it vexes you, that is the thing!Toad or rat vex the king?Though I waste half my realm to unearthToad or rat, 'tis well worth!"
So, I soberly laid my last planTo extinguish the man.Round his creep-hole, with never a breakRan my fires for his sake;Over-head, did my thunder combineWith my underground mine:Till I looked from my labour contentTo enjoy the event.
When sudden... how think ye, the end?Did I say "without friend"?Say rather, from marge to blue margeThe whole sky grew his targeWith the sun's self for visible boss,While an Arm ran acrossWhich the earth heaved beneath like a breastWhere the wretch was safe prest!Do you see? Just my vengeance complete,The man sprang to his feet,Stood erect, caught at God's skirts, and prayed!--So, I was afraid!
Words in this poem 16
- inveigle v. t.
- To lead astray as if blind; to persuade to something evil by deceptive arts or flattery; to entice; to insnare; to seduce; to wheedle. [Prob. fr. F. aveugler to blind, to delude, OF. aveugler, avugler, avegler, fr. F. aveugle blind, OF. aveugle, avugle, properly, without eyes, fr. L. ab + oculus]
- perdue a.
- Lost to view; in concealment or ambush; close. [F. perdu, f. perdue, lost, p.p. of perdre to lose, L. perdere. See Perdition.]
- mesh n.
- The opening or space inclosed by the threads of a net between knot and knot, or the threads inclosing such a space; network; a net. [AS. masc, max, m; akin to D. maas, masche, OHG. masca, Icel. möskvi; cf. Lith. mazgas a knot, megsti to weave nets, to knot.]
- cates n.
- Provisions; food; viands; especially, luxurious food; delicacies; dainties. [Cf. Acates, and see Cater, n.]
- spilth n.
- Anything spilt, or freely poured out; slop; effusion. [From Spill.]
- kith n.
- Acquaintance; kindred. [OE. kith, cu, AS. cc known. Uncouth, Can, and cf. Kythe.]
- pelf n.
- Money; riches; lucre; gain; -- generally conveying the idea of something ill-gotten or worthless. It has no plural. [OE. pelfir booty, OF. pelfre, akin to pelfrer to plunder, and perh. to E. pillage. Cf. Pilfer.]
- midge n.
- Any one of many small, delicate, long-legged flies of the Chironomus, and allied genera, which do not bite. Their larvæ are usually aquatic.
- humour n.
- Moisture, especially, the moisture or fluid of animal bodies, as the chyle, lymph, etc.; as, the humors of the eye, etc. [OE. humour, OF. humor, umor, F. humeur, L. humor, umor, moisture, fluid, fr. humere, umere, to be moist. See Humid.]
- fain v. t.
- To be glad ; to wish or desire.
- admire v. t.
- To regard with wonder or astonishment; to view with surprise; to marvel at. [F. admirer, fr. L. admirari; ad + mirari to wonder, for smirari, akin to Gr. smi, and E. smile.]
- unearth v. t.
- To drive or draw from the earth; hence, to uncover; to bring out from concealment; to bring to light; to disclose; as, to unearth a secret. [1st pref. un- + earth.]
- soberly a.
- Grave; serious; solemn; sad.
- marge n.
- Border; margin; edge; verge. [F. marge. See Margin.]
- targe n.
- A shield or target. [F. Cf. Target.]
- prest a.
- Ready; prompt; prepared. [OF. prest, F. prêt, fr. L. praestus ready. Cf. Presto.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Instans Tyrannus is in the public domain. This text is taken from Dramatic Romances, Project Gutenberg ebook #4253; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Robert Browning, Instans Tyrannus, in Dramatic Lyrics (1842), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #4253, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/browning-dramatic-lyrics/instans-tyrannus.html, id L03539.
Form and metre
Instans Tyrannus is 72 lines in 7 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 94% of the lines. The metre is anapaestic trimeter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.3 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 32% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in rhyming couplets, other poems in anapaestic trimeter.
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 AABB lessA · possessA · undefinedB · mindB
- 2 AABBCC courseA · forceA · weightB · hateB · curseC · worseC
- 3 AABBCCDDEEFF standA · handA · blotsB · squatsB · stretchC · wretchC · threwD · perdueD · fleshE · meshE · spilthF · filthF
- 4 AABBCCDDEEFF accessA · pressA · seizeB · theseB · pursueC · twoC · pelfD · himselfD · chafeE · safeE · nitF · witF
- 5 AA--BBCCDD--EEFFGG placeA · faceA · mouth · uncouth · fainB · painB · myselfC · elfC · ratD · thatD · suit · foot · debateE · greatE · thingF · kingF · unearthG · worthG
- 6 AABBCCDD planA · manA · breakB · sakeB · combineC · mineC · contentD · eventD
- 7 AABBCCDDEEFF endA · friendA · margeB · targeB · bossC · acrossC · breastD · prestD · completeE · feetE · prayedF · afraidF
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 anapaestic trimeter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Of the million or two, more or less | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| I rule and possess, | 5 | ···˘/ |
| One man, for some cause undefined, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Was least to my mind. | 5 | ····· |
| I struck him, he grovelled of course-- | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| For, what was his force? | 5 | ····· |
| I pinned him to earth with my weight | 8 | ········ |
| And persistence of hate: | 6 | ·˘/˘·· |
| And he lay, would not moan, would not curse, | 9 | ········· |
| As his lot might be worse. | 6 | ······ |
| "Were the object less mean, would he stand | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| At the swing of my hand! | 6 | ······ |
| For obscurity helps him and blots | 8 | ·˘/˘···· |
| The hole where he squats." | 5 | ····· |
| So, I set my five wits on the stretch | 9 | ········· |
| To inveigle the wretch. | 6 | ·˘/˘·· |
| All in vain! Gold and jewels I threw, | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Still he couched there perdue; | 6 | ····˘/ |
| I tempted his blood and his flesh, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Hid in roses my mesh, | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Choicest cates and the flagon's best spilth: | 9 | /˘······· |
| Still he kept to his filth. | 6 | ······ |
| Had he kith now or kin, were access | 9 | ·······/· |
| To his heart, did I press: | 6 | ······ |
| Just a son or a mother to seize! | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| No such booty as these. | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Were it simply a friend to pursue | 9 | ··/˘···˘/ |
| 'Mid my million or two, | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Who could pay me in person or pelf | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| What he owes me himself! | 6 | ····˘/ |
| No: I could not but smile through my chafe: | 9 | ········· |
| For the fellow lay safe | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| As his mates do, the midge and the nit, | 9 | ········· |
| --Through minuteness, to wit. | 6 | ·˘/˘·· |
| Then a humour more great took its place | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| At the thought of his face, | 6 | ······ |
| The droop, the low cares of the mouth, | 8 | ········ |
| The trouble uncouth | 5 | ·/˘// |
| 'Twixt the brows, all that air one is fain | 9 | ········· |
| To put out of its pain. | 6 | ······ |
| And, "no!" I admonished myself, | 8 | ···˘/˘·/ |
| "Is one mocked by an elf, | 6 | ······ |
| Is one baffled by toad or by rat? | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| The gravamen's in that! | 6 | ······ |
| How the lion, who crouches to suit | 8 | ··/·/˘·· |
| His back to my foot, | 5 | ····· |
| Would admire that I stand in debate! | 9 | ·˘/····˘/ |
| But the small turns the great | 6 | ······ |
| If it vexes you, that is the thing! | 9 | ········· |
| Toad or rat vex the king? | 6 | ······ |
| Though I waste half my realm to unearth | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| Toad or rat, 'tis well worth!" | 6 | ······ |
| So, I soberly laid my last plan | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| To extinguish the man. | 6 | ·˘/˘·· |
| Round his creep-hole, with never a break | 8 | ·····/·· |
| Ran my fires for his sake; | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Over-head, did my thunder combine | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| With my underground mine: | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Till I looked from my labour content | 9 | ·····/·/˘ |
| To enjoy the event. | 6 | ·˘/·˘/ |
| When sudden... how think ye, the end? | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Did I say "without friend"? | 6 | ······ |
| Say rather, from marge to blue marge | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The whole sky grew his targe | 6 | ······ |
| With the sun's self for visible boss, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| While an Arm ran across | 6 | ····˘/ |
| Which the earth heaved beneath like a breast | 9 | ········· |
| Where the wretch was safe prest! | 6 | ······ |
| Do you see? Just my vengeance complete, | 9 | ·····/˘˘/ |
| The man sprang to his feet, | 6 | ······ |
| Stood erect, caught at God's skirts, and prayed! | 9 | ·˘/······ |
| --So, I was afraid! | 5 | ···˘/ |
On this poem
"Instans Tyrannus" is a despot's confession of one of his own experiences which showed him the inviolability of the weakest man who is in the right and who can call the spiritual force of good to his aid against the utmost violence or cunning.--"Instans Tyrannus," or the threatening tyrant, suggested by Horace, third Ode in Book III: "Justum et tenacem proposti vlrum, Non civium ardor prava jubentium, Non vultus instantis tyranni," etc.
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.