Canto II: Canto II V
Quick at the word they seized him each a torch,And fire the dome from minaret to porch.A stern delight was fixed in Conrad's eye,But sudden sunk--for on his ear the cryOf women struck, and like a deadly knellKnocked at that heart unmoved by Battle's yell."Oh! burst the Haram--wrong not on your livesOne female form--remember--we have wives.On them such outrage Vengeance will repay;Man is our foe, and such 'tis ours to slay:But still we spared--must spare the weaker prey.Oh! I forgot--but Heaven will not forgiveIf at my word the helpless cease to live;Follow who will--I go--we yet have timeOur souls to lighten of at least a crime."He climbs the crackling stair--he bursts the door,Nor feels his feet glow scorching with the floor;His breath choked gasping with the volumed smoke,But still from room to room his way he broke.They search--they find--they save: with lusty armsEach bears a prize of unregarded charms;Calm their loud fears; sustain their sinking framesWith all the care defenceless Beauty claims:So well could Conrad tame their fiercest mood,And check the very hands with gore imbrued.But who is she? whom Conrad's arms convey,From reeking pile and combat's wreck, away--Who but the love of him he dooms to bleed?The Haram queen--but still the slave of Seyd!
Words in this poem
- minaret n.
- A slender, lofty tower attached to a mosque and surrounded by one or more projecting balconies, from which the summon to prayer is cried by the muezzin. [Sp. minarete, Ar. manarat lamp, lantern, lighthouse, turret, fr. nar to shine.]
- unmoved a.
- Not moved; fixed; firm; unshaken; calm; apathetic.
- scorching a.
- Burning; parching or shriveling with heat.
- volumed a.
- Having the form of a volume, or roil; as, volumed mist.
- broke v. i.
- To transact business for another. Brome. [See Broker, and cf. Brook.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Canto II: Canto II V is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Works of Lord Byron. Vol. 3, Project Gutenberg ebook #21811; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Lord Byron, Canto II: Canto II V, in The Giaour, and Other Poems (1816), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21811, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/byron-works-3/canto-ii-canto-ii-v.html, id L23905.
Form and metre
Canto II: Canto II V is 29 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 62% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%).
See other poems in heroic couplets, 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 AABBCCDDEEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLEE-- torchA · porchA · eyeB · cryB · knellC · yellC · livesD · wivesD · repayE · slayE · preyE · forgiveF · liveF · timeG · crimeG · doorH · floorH · smokeI · brokeI · armsJ · charmsJ · framesK · claimsK · moodL · imbruedL · conveyE · awayE · bleed · seyd
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Quick at the word they seized him each a torch, | 10 | ·········· |
| And fire the dome from minaret to porch. | 10 | ·/····˘/·· |
| A stern delight was fixed in Conrad's eye, | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| But sudden sunk--for on his ear the cry | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Of women struck, and like a deadly knell | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Knocked at that heart unmoved by Battle's yell. | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| "Oh! burst the Haram--wrong not on your lives | 10 | ·········· |
| One female form--remember--we have wives. | 10 | ·/··˘/˘··· |
| On them such outrage Vengeance will repay; | 10 | ···/·/˘·˘/ |
| Man is our foe, and such 'tis ours to slay: | 10 | ··/····/·· |
| But still we spared--must spare the weaker prey. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Oh! I forgot--but Heaven will not forgive | 10 | ··˘/·/··˘/ |
| If at my word the helpless cease to live; | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Follow who will--I go--we yet have time | 10 | /˘········ |
| Our souls to lighten of at least a crime." | 10 | /··/˘····· |
| He climbs the crackling stair--he bursts the door, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Nor feels his feet glow scorching with the floor; | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| His breath choked gasping with the volumed smoke, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| But still from room to room his way he broke. | 10 | ·········· |
| They search--they find--they save: with lusty arms | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Each bears a prize of unregarded charms; | 10 | ·········· |
| Calm their loud fears; sustain their sinking frames | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| With all the care defenceless Beauty claims: | 11 | ········/˘· |
| So well could Conrad tame their fiercest mood, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And check the very hands with gore imbrued. | 10 | ···/˘····˘ |
| But who is she? whom Conrad's arms convey, | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| From reeking pile and combat's wreck, away-- | 10 | ·/˘··˘/·˘/ |
| Who but the love of him he dooms to bleed? | 10 | ·········· |
| The Haram queen--but still the slave of Seyd! | 10 | ·········· |
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