Us Two
Wherever I am, there's always Pooh,There's always Pooh and Me.Whatever I do, he wants to do,"Where are you going to-day?" says Pooh:"Well, that's very odd 'cos I was too.Let's go together," says Pooh, says he."Let's go together," says Pooh.
"What's twice eleven?" I said to Pooh.("Twice what?" said Pooh to Me.)"I think it ought to be twenty-two.""Just what I think myself," said Pooh."It wasn't an easy sum to do,But that's what it is," said Pooh, said he."That's what it is," said Pooh.
"Let's look for dragons," I said to Pooh."Yes, let's," said Pooh to Me.We crossed the river and found a few—"Yes, those are dragons all right," said Pooh."As soon as I saw their beaks I knew.That's what they are," said Pooh, said he."That's what they are," said Pooh.
"Let's frighten the dragons," I said to Pooh."That's right," said Pooh to Me."I'm not afraid," I said to Pooh,And I held his paw and I shouted "Shoo!Silly old dragons!"—and off they flew."I wasn't afraid," said Pooh, said he,"I'm never afraid with you."
So wherever I am, there's always Pooh,There's always Pooh and Me."What would I do?" I said to Pooh,"If it wasn't for you," and Pooh said: "True,It isn't much fun for One, but TwoCan stick together," says Pooh, says he."That's how it is," says Pooh.
Words in this poem
- wherever adv.
- At or in whatever place; wheresoever.
- pooh interj.
- Pshaw! pish! nonsense! -- an expression of scorn, dislike, or contempt. [Of. imitative origin; cf. Icel. pu.]
- ought p. p.
- Was or were under obligation to pay; owed. [Orig. the preterit of the verb to owe. OE. oughte, aughte, ahte, AS. ahte. sq. root110. See Owe.]
- shoo interj.
- Begone; away; -- an expression used in frightening away animals, especially fowls. [Cf. G. scheuchen to scare, drive away.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Us Two is in the public domain. This text is taken from Now We Are Six, Project Gutenberg ebook #70516; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: A. A. Milne, Us Two, in Now We Are Six (1927), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #70516, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/milne-now-we-are-six/us-two.html, id L27228.
Form and metre
Us Two is 35 lines in 5 stanzas of 7 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABAAABA. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 77%).
See other poems in iambic 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 ABAAABA poohA · meB · doA · poohA · tooA · heB · poohA
- 2 ABAAABA poohA · meB · twoA · poohA · doA · heB · poohA
- 3 ABAAABA poohA · meB · fewA · poohA · knewA · heB · poohA
- 4 ABAAABA poohA · meB · poohA · shooA · flewA · heB · youA
- 5 ABAAABA poohA · meB · poohA · trueA · twoA · heB · poohA
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Wherever I am, there's always Pooh, | 9 | ˘/˘···/·· |
| There's always Pooh and Me. | 6 | ·/···· |
| Whatever I do, he wants to do, | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| "Where are you going to-day?" says Pooh: | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| "Well, that's very odd 'cos I was too. | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| Let's go together," says Pooh, says he. | 9 | ··˘/˘···· |
| "Let's go together," says Pooh. | 7 | ··˘/˘·· |
| "What's twice eleven?" I said to Pooh. | 9 | ··˘/˘···· |
| ("Twice what?" said Pooh to Me.) | 6 | ······ |
| "I think it ought to be twenty-two." | 9 | ······/˘· |
| "Just what I think myself," said Pooh. | 8 | ·····/·· |
| "It wasn't an easy sum to do, | 9 | ·/˘·/˘··· |
| But that's what it is," said Pooh, said he. | 9 | ········· |
| "That's what it is," said Pooh. | 6 | ······ |
| "Let's look for dragons," I said to Pooh. | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| "Yes, let's," said Pooh to Me. | 6 | ······ |
| We crossed the river and found a few— | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| "Yes, those are dragons all right," said Pooh. | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| "As soon as I saw their beaks I knew. | 9 | ········· |
| That's what they are," said Pooh, said he. | 8 | ········ |
| "That's what they are," said Pooh. | 6 | ······ |
| "Let's frighten the dragons," I said to Pooh. | 10 | ·/˘·/˘···· |
| "That's right," said Pooh to Me. | 6 | ······ |
| "I'm not afraid," I said to Pooh, | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| And I held his paw and I shouted "Shoo! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Silly old dragons!"—and off they flew. | 9 | /˘·/˘···· |
| "I wasn't afraid," said Pooh, said he, | 9 | ·/˘˘/···· |
| "I'm never afraid with you." | 7 | ·/˘˘/·· |
| So wherever I am, there's always Pooh, | 10 | ·˘/˘···/·· |
| There's always Pooh and Me. | 6 | ·/···· |
| "What would I do?" I said to Pooh, | 8 | ········ |
| "If it wasn't for you," and Pooh said: "True, | 10 | ··/˘······ |
| It isn't much fun for One, but Two | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| Can stick together," says Pooh, says he. | 9 | ··˘/˘···· |
| "That's how it is," says Pooh. | 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.