Song of the Bowmen of Shu
Here we are, picking the first fern-shootsAnd saying: When shall we get back to our country?Here we are because we have the Ken-nin for ourfoemen,We have no comfort because of these Mongols.We grub the soft fern-shoots,When anyone says "Return," the others are full ofsorrow.Sorrowful minds, sorrow is strong, we are hungryand thirsty.Our defence is not yet made sure, no one can lethis friend return.We grub the old fern-stalks.We say: Will we be let to go back in October?There is no ease in royal affairs, we have no comfort.Our sorrow is bitter, but we would not return to ourcountry.What flower has come into blossom?Whose chariot? The General's.Horses, his horses even, are tired. They were strong.We have no rest, three battles a month.By heaven, his horses are tired.The generals are on them, the soldiers are by themThe horses are well trained, the generals have ivoryarrows and quivers ornamented with fish-skin.The enemy is swift, we must be careful.When we set out, the willows were drooping with spring,We come back in the snow,We go slowly, we are hungry and thirsty,Our mind is full of sorrow, who will know of our grief?
Words in this poem
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- anyone n.
- One taken at random rather than by selection; anybody.
- defence n.
- The act of defending, or the state of being defended; protection, as from violence or danger. [F. défense, OF. defense, fem., defens, masc., fr. L. defensa (cf. Fence.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Song of the Bowmen of Shu is in the public domain. This text is taken from Cathay, Project Gutenberg ebook #50155; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Ezra Pound, Song of the Bowmen of Shu, in Cathay (1915), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #50155, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/pound-cathay/song-of-the-bowmen-of-shu.html, id L01231.
Form and metre
Song of the Bowmen of Shu is 30 lines in a single stanza. 85% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.8 syllables. 16 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 27% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
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 ABC--A---DE---ECB-----------D- shootsA · countryB · ourC · foemen · mongols · shootsA · of · sorrow · hungry · thirstyD · letE · return · stalks · october · comfortE · ourC · countryB · blossom · general's · strong · month · tired · them · ivory · skin · careful · spring · snow · thirstyD · grief
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. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Here we are, picking the first fern-shoots | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| And saying: When shall we get back to our country? | 13 | ·/˘······/˘/˘ |
| Here we are because we have the Ken-nin for our | 13 | ···········/˘ |
| foemen, | 2 | ·· |
| We have no comfort because of these Mongols. | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| We grub the soft fern-shoots, | 6 | ······ |
| When anyone says "Return," the others are full of | 13 | ·/˘··˘/·/˘··· |
| sorrow. | 2 | /˘ |
| Sorrowful minds, sorrow is strong, we are hungry | 12 | /˘˘·/˘····/˘ |
| and thirsty. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| Our defence is not yet made sure, no one can let | 13 | /˘˘/········· |
| his friend return. | 4 | ··˘/ |
| We grub the old fern-stalks. | 6 | ······ |
| We say: Will we be let to go back in October? | 13 | ··········˘/˘ |
| There is no ease in royal affairs, we have no comfort. | 14 | ·····/˘˘/···/˘ |
| Our sorrow is bitter, but we would not return to our | 16 | /˘/˘·/˘····˘/·/˘ |
| country. | 2 | /˘ |
| What flower has come into blossom? | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
| Whose chariot? The General's. | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘˘ |
| Horses, his horses even, are tired. They were strong. | 13 | /˘·/˘/˘·/˘··· |
| We have no rest, three battles a month. | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| By heaven, his horses are tired. | 9 | ·/˘·/˘·/˘ |
| The generals are on them, the soldiers are by them | 13 | ·/˘˘····/˘··· |
| The horses are well trained, the generals have ivory | 14 | ·/˘····/˘˘·/˘˘ |
| arrows and quivers ornamented with fish-skin. | 12 | /˘·/˘/˘·˘··· |
| The enemy is swift, we must be careful. | 11 | ·/˘˘·····/˘ |
| When we set out, the willows were drooping with spring, | 12 | ·····/··/˘·· |
| We come back in the snow, | 6 | ······ |
| We go slowly, we are hungry and thirsty, | 11 | ··/˘··/˘·/˘ |
| Our mind is full of sorrow, who will know of our grief? | 15 | /˘····/˘····/˘· |
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.