Nannie Braw
I like ye weel upo Sundays, Nannie,I' yer goon and yer ribbons and a';But I like ye better on Mondays, Nannie,Whan ye're no sae buskit and braw.
For whan we're sittin sae douce, Nannie,Wi' the lave o' the worshippin fowk,That aneth the haly hoose, Nannie,Ye micht hear a moudiwarp howk,
It will come into my heid, Nannie,O' yer braws ye are thinkin a wee;No alane o' the Bible-seed, Nannie,Nor the minister nor me!
Syne hame athort the green, Nannie,Ye gang wi' a toss o' yer chin;And there walks a shadow atween 's, Nannie,A dark ane though it be thin!
But noo, whan I see ye gang, Nannie,Eident at what's to be dune,Liltin a haiveless sang, Nannie,I wud kiss yer verra shune!
Wi' yer silken net on yer hair, Nannie,I' yer bonnie blue petticoat,Wi' yer kin'ly arms a' bare, Nannie,On yer ilka motion I doat.
For, oh, but ye're canty and free, Nannie,Airy o' hert and o' fit!A star-beam glents frae yer ee, Nannie--O' yersel ye're no thinkin a bit!
Fillin the cogue frae the coo, Nannie,Skimmin the yallow ream,Pourin awa the het broo, Nannie,Lichtin the lampie's leme,
Turnin or steppin alang, Nannie,Liftin and layin doon,Settin richt what's aye gaein wrang, Nannie,Yer motion's baith dance and tune!
I' the hoose ye're a licht and a law, Nannie,A servan like him 'at's abune:Oh, a woman's bonniest o' a', Nannie,Doin what maun be dune!
Cled i' yer Sunday claes, Nannie,Fair kythe ye to mony an ee;But cled i' yer ilka-day's, Nannie,Ye draw the hert frae me!
Words in this poem
- weel
- A kind of trap or snare for fish, made of twigs. Carew. [Prov. E. weel, weal, a wicker basket to catch eels; prob. akin to willow, and so called as made of willow twigs.]
- braw a.
- Well-dressed; handsome; smart; brave; -- used of persons or their clothing, etc.; as, a braw lad.
- douce a.
- Sweet; pleasant. [F. doux, masc., douce, fem., sweet, fr. L. duleis sweet.]
- lave v. t.
- To lade, dip, or pour out. [OE. laven. See Lavish.]
- syne adv.
- Afterwards; since; ago. R. of Brunne. [See Since.]
- atween adv.
- Between. Spenser. [See Atwain, and cf. Between.]
- dune n.
- A low hill of drifting sand usually formed on the coats, but often carried far inland by the prevailing winds. [The same word as down: cf. D. duin. See Down a bank of sand.]
- canty a.
- Cheerful; sprightly; lively; merry.
- cogue n.
- A small wooden vessel; a pail. Jamieson. [Cf. Cog a small boat.]
- ream n.
- Cream; also, the cream or froth on ale. [AS. reám, akin to G. rahm.]
- leme n.
- A ray or glimmer of light; a gleam. [OE. leem, leme, leam, AS. leóma light, brightness; akin to E. light, n. sq. root122.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Nannie Braw is in the public domain. This text is taken from The poetical works of George MacDonald in two volumes — Volume 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #9984; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: George MacDonald, Nannie Braw, in A Microcosm in Terza Rima, and Other Poems (1893), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #9984, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/macdonald-poems/nannie-braw.html, id L22531.
Form and metre
Nannie Braw is 44 lines in 11 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 9 of its 11 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 73%).
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- nannieA · a · nannieA · braw
- 2 ABAB nannieA · fowkB · nannieA · howkB
- 3 ABAB nannieA · weeB · nannieA · meB
- 4 ABAB nannieA · chinB · nannieA · thinB
- 5 ABAB nannieA · duneB · nannieA · shuneB
- 6 ABAB nannieA · petticoatB · nannieA · doatB
- 7 ABAB nannieA · fitB · nannieA · bitB
- 8 ABAB nannieA · reamB · nannieA · lemeB
- 9 ABAB nannieA · doonB · nannieA · tuneB
- 10 A-A- nannieA · abune · nannieA · dune
- 11 ABAB nannieA · eeB · nannieA · meB
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 |
|---|---|---|
| I like ye weel upo Sundays, Nannie, | 10 | ······/··· |
| I' yer goon and yer ribbons and a'; | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| But I like ye better on Mondays, Nannie, | 11 | ····/˘·/··· |
| Whan ye're no sae buskit and braw. | 8 | ········ |
| For whan we're sittin sae douce, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Wi' the lave o' the worshippin fowk, | 9 | ········· |
| That aneth the haly hoose, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Ye micht hear a moudiwarp howk, | 8 | ········ |
| It will come into my heid, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| O' yer braws ye are thinkin a wee; | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| No alane o' the Bible-seed, Nannie, | 10 | ·˘/··/˘··· |
| Nor the minister nor me! | 7 | ··/˘˘·· |
| Syne hame athort the green, Nannie, | 8 | ········ |
| Ye gang wi' a toss o' yer chin; | 8 | ········ |
| And there walks a shadow atween 's, Nannie, | 11 | ····/·˘/··· |
| A dark ane though it be thin! | 7 | ······· |
| But noo, whan I see ye gang, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Eident at what's to be dune, | 7 | ······· |
| Liltin a haiveless sang, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| I wud kiss yer verra shune! | 7 | ······· |
| Wi' yer silken net on yer hair, Nannie, | 10 | ··/˘······ |
| I' yer bonnie blue petticoat, | 8 | ··/˘·/˘· |
| Wi' yer kin'ly arms a' bare, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| On yer ilka motion I doat. | 8 | ··/˘/˘·· |
| For, oh, but ye're canty and free, Nannie, | 10 | ····/˘···· |
| Airy o' hert and o' fit! | 7 | /˘····· |
| A star-beam glents frae yer ee, Nannie-- | 9 | ········· |
| O' yersel ye're no thinkin a bit! | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Fillin the cogue frae the coo, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Skimmin the yallow ream, | 6 | ······ |
| Pourin awa the het broo, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Lichtin the lampie's leme, | 5 | ····· |
| Turnin or steppin alang, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Liftin and layin doon, | 5 | /˘··· |
| Settin richt what's aye gaein wrang, Nannie, | 9 | ········· |
| Yer motion's baith dance and tune! | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| I' the hoose ye're a licht and a law, Nannie, | 11 | ··········· |
| A servan like him 'at's abune: | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Oh, a woman's bonniest o' a', Nannie, | 10 | ··/˘/˘···· |
| Doin what maun be dune! | 5 | ····· |
| Cled i' yer Sunday claes, Nannie, | 8 | ···/···· |
| Fair kythe ye to mony an ee; | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| But cled i' yer ilka-day's, Nannie, | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Ye draw the hert frae me! | 6 | ······ |
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