A Florida Night
Win' a-blowin' gentle so de san' lay low,San' a little heavy f'om de rain,All de pa'ms a-wavin' an' a-weavin' slow,Sighin' lak a sinnah-soul in pain.Alligator grinnin' by de ol' lagoon,Mockin'-bird a-singin' to be big full moon.'Skeeter go a-skimmin' to his fightin' chune(Lizy Ann's a-waitin' in de lane!).
Moccasin a-sleepin' in de cyprus swamp;Need n't wake de gent'man, not fu' me.Mule, you need n't wake him w'en you switch an' stomp,Fightin' off a 'skeeter er a flea.Florida is lovely, she's de fines' lan'Evah seed de sunlight f'om de Mastah's han','Ceptin' fu' de varmints an' huh fleas an' san'An' de nights w'en Lizy Ann ain' free.
Moon 's a-kinder shaddered on de melon patch;No one ain't a-watchin' ez I go.Climbin' of de fence so 's not to click de latchMeks my gittin' in a little slow.Watermelon smilin' as it say, "I' s free;"Alligator boomin', but I let him be,Florida, oh, Florida 's de lan' fu' me--(Lizy Ann a-singin' sweet an' low).
Words in this poem
- lagoon n.
- A shallow sound, channel, pond, or lake, especially one into which the sea flows; as, the lagoons of Venice. [It. or Sp. laguna, L. lacuna ditch, pool, pond,lacus lake. See Lake, and cf. Lacuna.]
- moccasin n.
- A shoe made of deerskin, or other soft leather, the sole and upper part being one piece. It is the customary shoe worn by the American Indians. [An Indian word. Algonquin makisin.]
- cyprus n.
- A thin, transparent stuff, the same as, or corresponding to, crape. It was either white or black, the latter being most common, and used for mourning. [OE. cipres, cypirs; perh. so named as being first manufactured in Cyprus. Cf. Cipers.]
- stomp v. i.
- To stamp with the foot. [See Stamp.]
- latch v. t.
- To smear; to anoint. [Cf. F. lécher to lick (of German origin). Cf. Lick.]
- watermelon n.
- The very large ovoid or roundish fruit of a cucurbitaceous plant (Citrullus vulgaris) of many varieties; also, the plant itself.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
A Florida Night is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar, Project Gutenberg ebook #18338; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Paul Laurence Dunbar, A Florida Night, in The Complete Poems (1893–1905), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #18338, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/dunbar-poems/a-florida-night.html, id L00744.
Form and metre
A Florida Night is 24 lines in 3 stanzas of 8 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABABCCCB. The metre is trochaic hexameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%). 92% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.2 syllables. 8% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in trochaic hexameter.
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 ABABCCCB lowA · rainB · slowA · painB · lagoonC · moonC · chuneC · laneB
- 2 ABABCCCB swampA · meB · stompA · fleaB · lanC · hanC · sanC · freeB
- 3 ABABCCCB patchA · goB · latchA · slowB · freeC · beC · meC · lowB
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 trochaic hexameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Win' a-blowin' gentle so de san' lay low, | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| San' a little heavy f'om de rain, | 9 | ··/˘/˘··· |
| All de pa'ms a-wavin' an' a-weavin' slow, | 11 | ··········· |
| Sighin' lak a sinnah-soul in pain. | 9 | ········· |
| Alligator grinnin' by de ol' lagoon, | 11 | /˘·˘·····˘/ |
| Mockin'-bird a-singin' to be big full moon. | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| 'Skeeter go a-skimmin' to his fightin' chune | 11 | /˘······/˘· |
| (Lizy Ann's a-waitin' in de lane!). | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Moccasin a-sleepin' in de cyprus swamp; | 10 | /˘·····/˘· |
| Need n't wake de gent'man, not fu' me. | 9 | ········· |
| Mule, you need n't wake him w'en you switch an' stomp, | 11 | ··········· |
| Fightin' off a 'skeeter er a flea. | 9 | /˘··/˘··· |
| Florida is lovely, she's de fines' lan' | 9 | /˘·/˘···· |
| Evah seed de sunlight f'om de Mastah's han', | 11 | ····/······ |
| 'Ceptin' fu' de varmints an' huh fleas an' san' | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| An' de nights w'en Lizy Ann ain' free. | 9 | ········· |
| Moon 's a-kinder shaddered on de melon patch; | 11 | ···/····/˘· |
| No one ain't a-watchin' ez I go. | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Climbin' of de fence so 's not to click de latch | 12 | ············ |
| Meks my gittin' in a little slow. | 9 | ······/˘· |
| Watermelon smilin' as it say, "I' s free;" | 12 | /˘·˘········ |
| Alligator boomin', but I let him be, | 11 | /˘·˘······· |
| Florida, oh, Florida 's de lan' fu' me-- | 10 | /˘·/˘····· |
| (Lizy Ann a-singin' sweet an' low). | 9 | ····/˘··· |
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