The Diary of a Successful Man
'Ah,' he said, with interest, 'you know the late people, theFontaines.'
'I understood,' he began, but he broke off abruptly. 'I did not knowMadame de Savaresse married again.'
'Thy Sister,
'Janua cœli,Stella matutina,Salus infirmorum, Ora pro nobis!'
'Refugium peccatorum,Consolatrix afflictorum,Auxilium Christianorum, Ora pro nobis!'
Lorimer was still kneeling with bowed head in his place. Presently herose and came towards me. 'She was there--Delphine--you heard her. Ah,Dion, she loves you, she always loves you, you are avenged.'
Words in this poem
- broke v. i.
- To transact business for another. Brome. [See Broker, and cf. Brook.]
- madame n.
- My lady; -- a French title formerly given to ladies of quality; now, in France, given to all married women. [F., fr. ma my (L. mea) + dame dame. See Dame, and cf. Madonna.]
- lorimer n.
- A maker of bits, spurs, and metal mounting for bridles and saddles; hence, a saddler. Holinshed. [OF. lormier, loremier, fr. LL. loranum bridle, L. lorum thong, the rein of a bridle.]
- presently adv.
- At present; at this time; now.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Diary of a Successful Man is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems and Prose of Ernest Dowson, With a Memoir by Arthur Symons, Project Gutenberg ebook #8497; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Ernest Dowson, The Diary of a Successful Man, in The Poems of Ernest Dowson (1896–1899), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #8497, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/dowson-poems/the-diary-of-a-successful-man.html, id L01693.
Form and metre
The Diary of a Successful Man is 14 lines in 6 verse paragraphs. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic pentameter. 87% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.9 syllables. 3 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 21% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter, other poems in blank verse.
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.
- 5 AA- peccatorumA · afflictorumA · nobis
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 'Ah,' he said, with interest, 'you know the late people, the | 13 | ····/˘····/˘· |
| Fontaines.' | 2 | ˘/ |
| 'I understood,' he began, but he broke off abruptly. 'I did not know | 18 | ··˘/·˘/····˘/˘···· |
| Madame de Savaresse married again.' | 10 | /˘····/˘˘/ |
| 'Thy Sister, | 3 | ·/˘ |
| 'Janua cœli, | 4 | ···· |
| Stella matutina, | 6 | /˘···· |
| Salus infirmorum, Ora pro nobis!' | 11 | /˘····/˘·/˘ |
| 'Refugium peccatorum, | 7 | ······· |
| Consolatrix afflictorum, | 8 | ········ |
| Auxilium Christianorum, Ora pro nobis!' | 12 | ·······/˘·/˘ |
| Lorimer was still kneeling with bowed head in his place. Presently he | 15 | /˘··/˘······/˘· |
| rose and came towards me. 'She was there--Delphine--you heard her. Ah, | 15 | ········˘/˘···· |
| Dion, she loves you, she always loves you, you are avenged.' | 14 | /˘····/˘····˘/ |
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.