To W. R
MADAM Life’s a piece in bloomDeath goes dogging everywhere:She’s the tenant of the room,He’s the ruffian on the stair.
You shall see her as a friend,You shall bilk him once and twice;But he’ll trap you in the end,And he’ll stick you for her price.
With his kneebones at your chest,And his knuckles in your throat,You would reason—plead—protest!Clutching at her petticoat;
But she’s heard it all before,Well she knows you’ve had your fun,Gingerly she gains the door,And your little job is done.
Words in this poem
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- bilk v. t.
- To frustrate or disappoint; to deceive or defraud, by nonfulfillment of engagement; to leave in the lurch; to give the slip to; as, to bilk a creditor. Thackeray. [Origin unknown. Cf. Balk.]
- gingerly adv.
- Cautiously; timidly; fastidiously; daintily. [Prov. E. ginger brittle, tender; cf. dial. Sw. gingla, gängla, to go gently, totter, akin to E. gang.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
To W. R is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #1568; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: W. E. Henley, To W. R, in Poems (1898), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1568, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/henley-poems/to-w-r.html, id L12392.
Form and metre
To W. R is 16 lines in 4 stanzas of 4 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABAB. The metre is trochaic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 87%). 98% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.0 syllables. 6% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in trochaic tetrameter.
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 ABAB bloomA · everywhereB · roomA · stairB
- 2 ABAB friendA · twiceB · endA · priceB
- 3 ABAB chestA · throatB · protestA · petticoatB
- 4 ABAB beforeA · funB · doorA · doneB
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| MADAM Life’s a piece in bloom | 7 | /˘····· |
| Death goes dogging everywhere: | 7 | ··/˘/˘· |
| She’s the tenant of the room, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| He’s the ruffian on the stair. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| You shall see her as a friend, | 7 | ······· |
| You shall bilk him once and twice; | 7 | ······· |
| But he’ll trap you in the end, | 7 | ······· |
| And he’ll stick you for her price. | 7 | ······· |
| With his kneebones at your chest, | 7 | ··/···· |
| And his knuckles in your throat, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| You would reason—plead—protest! | 7 | ··/˘·˘/ |
| Clutching at her petticoat; | 7 | /˘··/˘· |
| But she’s heard it all before, | 7 | ······· |
| Well she knows you’ve had your fun, | 7 | ······· |
| Gingerly she gains the door, | 7 | /˘˘···· |
| And your little job is done. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
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.