A Plantation Bacchanal
W'en ole Mister Sun gits tiah'd a-hangin'High up in de sky;W'en der ain't no thunder and light'nin' a-bangin',An' de crap's done all laid by;W'en yo' bones ain't achin' wid de rheumatics,Den yo' ride de mule to town,Git a great big jug o' de ole corn juice,An' w'en you drink her down--
Jes lay away ole Trouble,An' dry up all yo' tears;Yo' pleasure sho' to doubleAn' you bound to lose yo' keers.Jes lay away ole SorrerHigh upon de shelf;And never mind to-morrer,'Twill take care of itself.
W'en ole Mister Age begins a-stealin'Thoo yo' back an' knees,W'en yo' bones an' jints lose der limber feelin',An' am stiff'nin' by degrees;Now der's jes one way to feel young and spry,W'en you heah dem banjos soun'Git a great big swig o' de ole corn juice,An' w'en you drink her down--
Jes lay away ole Trouble,An' dry up all yo' tears;Yo' pleasure sho' to doubleAn' you bound to lose yo' keers.Jes lay away ole SorrerHigh upon de shelf;And never mind to-morrer,'Twill take care of itself.
Words in this poem
- mister n.
- A trade, art, or occupation. [OF. mistier trade, office, ministry, need, F. métier trade, fr. L. ministerium service, office, ministry. See Ministry, Mystery trade.]
- spry a.
- Having great power of leaping or running; nimble; active. [U.S. [Cf. dial. Sw. sprygg lively, skittish, and E. sprag.]
- swig v. t.
- To drink in long draughts; to gulp; as, to swig cider. [Cf. D. zwelgen to swallow, E. swallow, v.t.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
A Plantation Bacchanal is in the public domain. This text is taken from Fifty Years, & Other Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #17884; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: James Weldon Johnson, A Plantation Bacchanal, in Fifty Years and Other Poems (1917), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #17884, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/johnson-fifty-years/a-plantation-bacchanal.html, id L08339.
Form and metre
A Plantation Bacchanal is 32 lines in 4 stanzas of 8 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABABCDCD, complete in 2 of its 4 stanzas. 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.4 syllables. 7 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 12% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
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-C-C hanginA · skyB · banginA · byB · rheumatics · townC · juice · downC
- 2 ABABCDCD troubleA · tearsB · doubleA · keersB · sorrerC · shelfD · morrerC · itselfD
- 3 ABAB---- stealinA · kneesB · feelinA · degreesB · spry · soun · juice · down
- 4 ABABCDCD troubleA · tearsB · doubleA · keersB · sorrerC · shelfD · morrerC · itselfD
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. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| W'en ole Mister Sun gits tiah'd a-hangin' | 10 | ··/˘····/˘ |
| High up in de sky; | 5 | ····· |
| W'en der ain't no thunder and light'nin' a-bangin', | 12 | ····/˘······ |
| An' de crap's done all laid by; | 7 | ······· |
| W'en yo' bones ain't achin' wid de rheumatics, | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| Den yo' ride de mule to town, | 7 | ······· |
| Git a great big jug o' de ole corn juice, | 10 | ·········· |
| An' w'en you drink her down-- | 6 | ······ |
| Jes lay away ole Trouble, | 7 | ··˘/·/˘ |
| An' dry up all yo' tears; | 6 | ······ |
| Yo' pleasure sho' to double | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| An' you bound to lose yo' keers. | 7 | ······· |
| Jes lay away ole Sorrer | 7 | ··˘/··· |
| High upon de shelf; | 5 | ····· |
| And never mind to-morrer, | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| 'Twill take care of itself. | 6 | ····˘/ |
| W'en ole Mister Age begins a-stealin' | 10 | ··/˘·˘/··· |
| Thoo yo' back an' knees, | 5 | ····· |
| W'en yo' bones an' jints lose der limber feelin', | 11 | ·······/˘/˘ |
| An' am stiff'nin' by degrees; | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| Now der's jes one way to feel young and spry, | 10 | ·········· |
| W'en you heah dem banjos soun' | 7 | ····/·· |
| Git a great big swig o' de ole corn juice, | 10 | ·········· |
| An' w'en you drink her down-- | 6 | ······ |
| Jes lay away ole Trouble, | 7 | ··˘/·/˘ |
| An' dry up all yo' tears; | 6 | ······ |
| Yo' pleasure sho' to double | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| An' you bound to lose yo' keers. | 7 | ······· |
| Jes lay away ole Sorrer | 7 | ··˘/··· |
| High upon de shelf; | 5 | ····· |
| And never mind to-morrer, | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| 'Twill take care of itself. | 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.