The Martyr of Alabama. 51
Cruel and dull, they saw in himFor sport an evil chance,And then demanded of the childTo give to them a dance.
"Come dance for us," the rough men said;"I can't," the child replied,"I cannot for the dear Lord's sake,Who for my sins once died."
Tho' they were strong and he was weak,He wouldn't his Lord deny.His life lay in their cruel hands,But he for Christ could die.
Heard they aright? Did that brave childTheir mandates dare resist?Did he against their stern commandsHave courage to insist?
Then recklessly a man (?) arose,And dealt a fearful blow.He crushed the portals of that life,And laid the brave child low.
And trampled on his prostrate form,As on a broken toy;
Words in this poem
- aright adv.
- Rightly; correctly; in a right way or form; without mistake or crime; as, to worship God aright. [Pref. a- + right.]
- insist v. i.
- To stand or rest; to find support; -- with in, on, or upon. [F. insister, L. insistere to set foot upon, follow, persist; pref. in- in + sistere to stand, cause to stand. See Stand.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Martyr of Alabama. 51 is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #679; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, The Martyr of Alabama. 51, in Poems (1854–1871), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #679, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/harper-poems/the-martyr-of-alabama-51.html, id L10589.
Form and metre
The Martyr of Alabama. 51 is 22 lines in 6 stanzas. The metre is common measure, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.0 syllables. 18% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in common measure.
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 -A-A him · chanceA · child · danceA
- 2 -A-A said · repliedA · sake · diedA
- 3 -A-A weak · denyA · hands · dieA
- 4 -A-A child · resistA · commands · insistA
- 5 -A-A arose · blowA · life · lowA
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 common measure. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Cruel and dull, they saw in him | 8 | /˘······ |
| For sport an evil chance, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| And then demanded of the child | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| To give to them a dance. | 6 | ······ |
| "Come dance for us," the rough men said; | 8 | ········ |
| "I can't," the child replied, | 6 | ····˘/ |
| "I cannot for the dear Lord's sake, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Who for my sins once died." | 6 | ······ |
| Tho' they were strong and he was weak, | 8 | ········ |
| He wouldn't his Lord deny. | 7 | ·/˘··˘/ |
| His life lay in their cruel hands, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| But he for Christ could die. | 6 | ······ |
| Heard they aright? Did that brave child | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| Their mandates dare resist? | 6 | ·/··˘/ |
| Did he against their stern commands | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Have courage to insist? | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| Then recklessly a man (?) arose, | 8 | ·/˘˘··˘/ |
| And dealt a fearful blow. | 6 | ···/˘· |
| He crushed the portals of that life, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And laid the brave child low. | 6 | ······ |
| And trampled on his prostrate form, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| As on a broken toy; | 6 | ···/˘· |
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.