The Bees and the Drones
Up in a lofty oak the BeesHad made their honey-combs: but theseThe Drones asserted they had wrought.Then to the bar the cause was broughtBefore the wasp, a learned chief,Who well might argue either brief,As of a middle nature made.He therefore to both parties said:"You're not dissimilar in size,And each with each your color vies,That there's a doubt concerning both:But, lest I err, upon my oath,Hives for yourselves directly choose,And in the wax the work infuse,That, from the flavor and the form,We may point out the genuine swarm."The Drones refuse, the Bees agree--Then thus did Justice Wasp decree:"Who can, and who cannot, is plain,So take, ye Bees, your combs again."This narrative had been suppress'dHad not the Drones refused the test.
About this text
The Bees and the Drones is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Fables of Phædrus Literally translated into English prose with notes, Project Gutenberg ebook #25512; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Phaedrus, The Bees and the Drones, in The Fables of Phaedrus (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #25512, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/phaedrus-fables/the-bees-and-the-drones.html, id L21284.
Form and metre
The Bees and the Drones is 22 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 91% of the lines: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%).
See other poems in octosyllabic couplets, 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 AABBCC--DDEEFFGGHHIIJJ beesA · theseA · wroughtB · broughtB · chiefC · briefC · made · said · sizeD · viesD · bothE · oathE · chooseF · infuseF · formG · swarmG · agreeH · decreeH · plainI · againI · suppress'dJ · testJ
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Up in a lofty oak the Bees | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Had made their honey-combs: but these | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| The Drones asserted they had wrought. | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Then to the bar the cause was brought | 8 | ········ |
| Before the wasp, a learned chief, | 8 | ······˘· |
| Who well might argue either brief, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| As of a middle nature made. | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| He therefore to both parties said: | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| "You're not dissimilar in size, | 8 | ··˘/˘˘·· |
| And each with each your color vies, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| That there's a doubt concerning both: | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| But, lest I err, upon my oath, | 8 | ········ |
| Hives for yourselves directly choose, | 8 | ··˘/˘/˘· |
| And in the wax the work infuse, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| That, from the flavor and the form, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| We may point out the genuine swarm." | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The Drones refuse, the Bees agree-- | 8 | ··˘/··˘/ |
| Then thus did Justice Wasp decree: | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| "Who can, and who cannot, is plain, | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| So take, ye Bees, your combs again." | 8 | ······˘/ |
| This narrative had been suppress'd | 8 | ·/˘˘··˘/ |
| Had not the Drones refused the test. | 8 | ····˘/·· |
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.