Fifine Answers
Sharing his exile that hath borne the flame,Joining his freedom that hath drunk the shameAnd known the torture of the Skull-place hoursFree and so bound, that mingled with the powersOf air and sea and light his soul's far reachYet strictured did the body-lips beseech"To drink" "I thirst." And then the sponge of gall.
Wherefore we wastrels that the grey road's callDoth master and make slaves and yet make free,Drink all of life and quaffing lustilyTake bitter with the sweet without complainAnd sharers in his drink defy the painThat makes you fearful to unfurl your souls.
We claim no glory. If the tempest rollsAbout us we have fear, and thenHaving so small a stake grow bold again.We know not definitely even thisBut 'cause some vague half knowing half doth missOur consciousness and leaves us feelingThat somehow all is well, that sober, reelingFrom the last carouse, or in what measureOf so called right or so damned wrong our leisureRuns out uncounted sand beneath the sun,That, spite your carping, still the thing is doneWith some deep sanction, that, we know not how,Sans thought gives us this feeling; you allowThat this not need we know our every thoughtOr see the work shop where each mask is wroughtWherefrom we view the world of box and pit,Careless of wear, just so the mask shall fitAnd serve our jape's turn for a night or two.
Call! eh bye! the little door at twelve!
I meet you there myself.
Words in this poem
- strictured a.
- Affected with a stricture; as, a strictured duct.
- wherefore adv.
- For which reason; so; -- used relatively. [Where + for.]
- lustily adv.
- In a lusty or vigorous manner.
- defy v. t.
- To renounce or dissolve all bonds of affiance, faith, or obligation with; to reject, refuse, or renounce. [F. défier, OF. deffier, desfier, LL. disfidare to disown faith or fidelity, to dissolve the bond of allegiance, as between the vassal and his lord; hence, to ch]
- unfurl v. t.
- To loose from a furled state; to unfold; to expand; to open or spread; as, to unfurl sails; to unfurl a flag. [1st pref. un- + furl.]
- somehow adv.
- In one way or another; in some way not yet known or designated; by some means; as, the thing must be done somehow; he lives somehow.
- damned a.
- Sentenced to punishment in a future state; condemned; consigned to perdition.
- carping a.
- Fault-finding; censorious caviling. See Captious.
- sans prep.
- Without; deprived or destitute of. Rarely used as an English word. [F., from L. sine without.]
- 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,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Fifine Answers is in the public domain. This text is taken from Personae, Project Gutenberg ebook #41162; 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, Fifine Answers, in Personae (1909), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #41162, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/pound-personae/fifine-answers.html, id L01198.
Form and metre
Fifine Answers is 33 lines in 5 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 73% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%). 92% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 7 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 71% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in heroic couplets, 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 AABBCCD flameA · shameA · hoursB · powersB · reachC · beseechC · gallD
- 2 D--EEF callD · free · lustily · complainE · painE · soulsF
- 3 FGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNN- rollsF · thenG · againG · thisH · missH · feelingI · reelingI · measureJ · leisureJ · sunK · doneK · howL · allowL · thoughtM · wroughtM · pitN · fitN · two
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sharing his exile that hath borne the flame, | 10 | /˘·/······ |
| Joining his freedom that hath drunk the shame | 10 | /˘·/˘····· |
| And known the torture of the Skull-place hours | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Free and so bound, that mingled with the powers | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| Of air and sea and light his soul's far reach | 10 | ·········· |
| Yet strictured did the body-lips beseech | 10 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| "To drink" "I thirst." And then the sponge of gall. | 10 | ·········· |
| Wherefore we wastrels that the grey road's call | 10 | /˘········ |
| Doth master and make slaves and yet make free, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Drink all of life and quaffing lustily | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| Take bitter with the sweet without complain | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| And sharers in his drink defy the pain | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| That makes you fearful to unfurl your souls. | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| We claim no glory. If the tempest rolls | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| About us we have fear, and then | 8 | ········ |
| Having so small a stake grow bold again. | 10 | /˘······˘/ |
| We know not definitely even this | 10 | ···/˘˘˘/˘· |
| But 'cause some vague half knowing half doth miss | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Our consciousness and leaves us feeling | 10 | /˘/˘˘···/˘ |
| That somehow all is well, that sober, reeling | 11 | ·/·····/˘/˘ |
| From the last carouse, or in what measure | 10 | ···˘/···/˘ |
| Of so called right or so damned wrong our leisure | 11 | ········//˘ |
| Runs out uncounted sand beneath the sun, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| That, spite your carping, still the thing is done | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| With some deep sanction, that, we know not how, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Sans thought gives us this feeling; you allow | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| That this not need we know our every thought | 10 | ······//˘· |
| Or see the work shop where each mask is wrought | 10 | ·········· |
| Wherefrom we view the world of box and pit, | 11 | ··········· |
| Careless of wear, just so the mask shall fit | 10 | /˘········ |
| And serve our jape's turn for a night or two. | 10 | ··/······· |
| Call! eh bye! the little door at twelve! | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| I meet you there myself. | 6 | ·····/ |
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