Einar Tamberskelver
It was Einar TamberskelverStood beside the mast;From his yew-bow, tipped with silver,Flew the arrows fast;Aimed at Eric unavailing,As he sat concealed,Half behind the quarter-railing,Half behind his shield.
First an arrow struck the tiller,Just above his head;"Sing, O Eyvind Skaldaspiller,"Then Earl Eric said."Sing the song of Hakon dying,Sing his funeral wail!"And another arrow flyingGrazed his coat of mail.
Turning to a Lapland yeoman,As the arrow passed,Said Earl Eric, "Shoot that bowmanStanding by the mast."Sooner than the word was spokenFlew the yeoman's shaft;Einar's bow in twain was broken,Einar only laughed.
"What was that?" said Olaf, standingOn the quarter-deck."Something heard I like the strandingOf a shattered wreck."Einar then, the arrow takingFrom the loosened string,Answered, "That was Norway breakingFrom thy hand, O King!"
"Thou art but a poor diviner,"Straightway Olaf said;"Take my bow, and swifter, Einar,Let thy shafts be sped."Of his bows the fairest choosing,Reached he from above;Einar saw the blood-drops oozingThrough his iron glove.
But the bow was thin and narrow;At the first assay,O'er its head he drew the arrow,Flung the bow away;Said, with hot and angry temperFlushing in his cheek,"Olaf! for so great a KamperAre thy bows too weak!"
Then, with smile of joy defiantOn his beardless lip,Scaled he, light and self-reliant,Eric's dragon-ship.Loose his golden locks were flowing,Bright his armor gleamed;Like Saint Michael overthrowingLucifer he seemed.
Words in this poem
- eric n.
- A recompense formerly given by a murderer to the relatives of the murdered person. [Ir. eiric.]
- bowman n.
- A man who uses a bow; an archer.
- twain a.
- Two;- nearly obsolete in common discourse, but used in poetry and burlesque. [OE. twein, tweien, tweyne, AS. twegen, masc. See Two.]
- straightway adv.
- Immediately; without loss of time; without delay.
- swifter v. t.
- To tighten, as slack standing rigging, by bringing the opposite shrouds nearer.
- angry a.
- Troublesome; vexatious; rigorous. [See Anger.]
- defiant a.
- Full of defiance; bold; insolent; as, a defiant spirit or act. [Cf. F. défiant, p. pr. of défier. See Defy.]
- beardless a.
- Without a beard. Hence: Not having arrived at puberty or manhood; youthful.
- scaled a.
- Covered with scales, or scalelike structures; -- said of a fish, a reptile, a moth, etc.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Einar Tamberskelver is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Project Gutenberg ebook #1365; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Einar Tamberskelver, in The Complete Poetical Works (1839–1882), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1365, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/longfellow-poems/einar-tamberskelver.html, id L17672.
Form and metre
Einar Tamberskelver is 56 lines in 7 stanzas of 8 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABABCDCD, complete in 4 of its 7 stanzas. The metre is trochaic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 95%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 6.6 syllables. 27 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 23% 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 -A-ABCBC tamberskelver · mastA · silver · fastA · unavailingB · concealedC · railingB · shieldC
- 2 ABABCDCD tillerA · headB · skaldaspillerA · saidB · dyingC · wailD · flyingC · mailD
- 3 ABABCDCD yeomanA · passedB · bowmanA · mastB · spokenC · shaftD · brokenC · laughedD
- 4 ABABCDCD standingA · deckB · strandingA · wreckB · takingC · stringD · breakingC · kingD
- 5 -A-ABCBC diviner · saidA · einar · spedA · choosingB · aboveC · oozingB · gloveC
- 6 A-A--B-B narrowA · assay · arrowA · away · temper · cheekB · kamper · weakB
- 7 ABABCDCD defiantA · lipB · reliantA · shipB · flowingC · gleamedD · overthrowingC · seemedD
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 |
|---|---|---|
| It was Einar Tamberskelver | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| Stood beside the mast; | 5 | ·˘/·· |
| From his yew-bow, tipped with silver, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Flew the arrows fast; | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Aimed at Eric unavailing, | 8 | ··/˘·˘/˘ |
| As he sat concealed, | 5 | ···˘/ |
| Half behind the quarter-railing, | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Half behind his shield. | 5 | ····· |
| First an arrow struck the tiller, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Just above his head; | 5 | ····· |
| "Sing, O Eyvind Skaldaspiller," | 8 | ········ |
| Then Earl Eric said. | 5 | ··/˘· |
| "Sing the song of Hakon dying, | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Sing his funeral wail!" | 6 | ··/˘˘· |
| And another arrow flying | 8 | ·˘/˘/˘/˘ |
| Grazed his coat of mail. | 5 | ····· |
| Turning to a Lapland yeoman, | 8 | /˘··/·/˘ |
| As the arrow passed, | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Said Earl Eric, "Shoot that bowman | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Standing by the mast." | 5 | /˘··· |
| Sooner than the word was spoken | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Flew the yeoman's shaft; | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Einar's bow in twain was broken, | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Einar only laughed. | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| "What was that?" said Olaf, standing | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| On the quarter-deck. | 5 | ··/˘· |
| "Something heard I like the stranding | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Of a shattered wreck." | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Einar then, the arrow taking | 8 | /˘··/˘/˘ |
| From the loosened string, | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Answered, "That was Norway breaking | 8 | /˘··/·/˘ |
| From thy hand, O King!" | 5 | ····· |
| "Thou art but a poor diviner," | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| Straightway Olaf said; | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| "Take my bow, and swifter, Einar, | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Let thy shafts be sped." | 5 | ····· |
| Of his bows the fairest choosing, | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Reached he from above; | 5 | ····· |
| Einar saw the blood-drops oozing | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Through his iron glove. | 5 | ··/˘· |
| But the bow was thin and narrow; | 8 | ······/˘ |
| At the first assay, | 5 | ···/˘ |
| O'er its head he drew the arrow, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Flung the bow away; | 5 | ···˘/ |
| Said, with hot and angry temper | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Flushing in his cheek, | 5 | /˘··· |
| "Olaf! for so great a Kamper | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Are thy bows too weak!" | 5 | ····· |
| Then, with smile of joy defiant | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| On his beardless lip, | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Scaled he, light and self-reliant, | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| Eric's dragon-ship. | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| Loose his golden locks were flowing, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Bright his armor gleamed; | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Like Saint Michael overthrowing | 8 | ··/˘/˘·˘ |
| Lucifer he seemed. | 5 | /˘˘·· |
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