Brer Rabbit, You's De Cutes' of 'Em All
Once der was a meetin' in de wilderness,All de critters of creation dey was dar;Brer Rabbit, Brer 'Possum, Brer Wolf, Brer Fox,King Lion, Mister Terrapin, Mister B'ar.De question fu' discussion was, "Who is de bigges' man?"Dey 'pinted ole Jedge Owl to decide;He polished up his spectacles an' put 'em on his nose,An' to the question slowly he replied:
"Brer Wolf am mighty cunnin',Brer Fox am mighty sly,Brer Terrapin an' 'Possum--kinder small;Brer Lion's mighty vicious,Brer B'ar he's sorter 'spicious,Brer Rabbit, you's de cutes' of 'em all."
Dis caused a great confusion 'mongst de animals,Ev'y critter claimed dat he had won de prize;Dey 'sputed an' dey arg'ed, dey growled an' dey roared,Den putty soon de dus' begin to rise.
Brer Rabbit he jes' stood aside an' urged 'em on to fight.Brer Lion he mos' tore Brer B'ar in two;W'en dey was all so tiahd dat dey couldn't catch der brefBrer Rabbit he jes' grabbed de prize an' flew.
Brer Wolf am mighty cunnin',Brer Fox am mighty sly,Brer Terrapin an' Possum--kinder small;Brer Lion's mighty vicious,Brer B'ar he's sorter 'spicious,Brer Rabbit, you's de cutes' of 'em all.
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.]
- terrapin n.
- Any one of numerous species of tortoises living in fresh and brackish waters. Many of them are valued for food. [Written also terapin, terrapen, terrapene, and turapen.] [Probably of American Indian origin.]
- sorter n.
- One who, or that which, sorts.
- tore n.
- The dead grass that remains on mowing land in winter and spring. Mortimer. [Probably from the root of tear; cf. W. tór a break, cut, tóri to break, cut.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Brer Rabbit, You's De Cutes' of 'Em All 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, Brer Rabbit, You's De Cutes' of 'Em All, in Fifty Years and Other Poems (1917), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #17884, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/johnson-fifty-years/brer-rabbit-you-s-de-cutes-of-em-all.html, id L08346.
Form and metre
Brer Rabbit, You's De Cutes' of 'Em All is 28 lines in 5 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 82%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.5 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending.
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
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-B-B wilderness · darA · fox · b'arA · man · decideB · nose · repliedB
- 2 --ABBA cunnin · sly · smallA · viciousB · spiciousB · allA
- 3 -A-A animals · prizeA · roared · riseA
- 4 -A-A fight · twoA · bref · flewA
- 5 --ABBA cunnin · sly · smallA · viciousB · spiciousB · allA
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Once der was a meetin' in de wilderness, | 10 | ········/˘ |
| All de critters of creation dey was dar; | 11 | ··/˘·˘/˘··· |
| Brer Rabbit, Brer 'Possum, Brer Wolf, Brer Fox, | 10 | ·/˘·/˘···· |
| King Lion, Mister Terrapin, Mister B'ar. | 10 | ·//˘/˘˘/˘· |
| De question fu' discussion was, "Who is de bigges' man?" | 14 | ·/˘·˘/˘······· |
| Dey 'pinted ole Jedge Owl to decide; | 9 | ·/˘····˘/ |
| He polished up his spectacles an' put 'em on his nose, | 13 | ·/˘··/˘······ |
| An' to the question slowly he replied: | 10 | ···/˘/˘·˘/ |
| "Brer Wolf am mighty cunnin', | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| Brer Fox am mighty sly, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Brer Terrapin an' 'Possum--kinder small; | 9 | ·/˘˘·/˘/· |
| Brer Lion's mighty vicious, | 7 | ·/˘/˘/˘ |
| Brer B'ar he's sorter 'spicious, | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| Brer Rabbit, you's de cutes' of 'em all." | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| Dis caused a great confusion 'mongst de animals, | 11 | ····˘/˘··/˘ |
| Ev'y critter claimed dat he had won de prize; | 11 | ··/˘······· |
| Dey 'sputed an' dey arg'ed, dey growled an' dey roared, | 11 | ··········· |
| Den putty soon de dus' begin to rise. | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| Brer Rabbit he jes' stood aside an' urged 'em on to fight. | 14 | ·/˘···˘/······ |
| Brer Lion he mos' tore Brer B'ar in two; | 9 | ·/······· |
| W'en dey was all so tiahd dat dey couldn't catch der bref | 13 | ········/˘··· |
| Brer Rabbit he jes' grabbed de prize an' flew. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Brer Wolf am mighty cunnin', | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| Brer Fox am mighty sly, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Brer Terrapin an' Possum--kinder small; | 9 | ·/˘˘·/˘/· |
| Brer Lion's mighty vicious, | 7 | ·/˘/˘/˘ |
| Brer B'ar he's sorter 'spicious, | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| Brer Rabbit, you's de cutes' of 'em all. | 9 | ·/˘······ |
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.