On the Road
Ever just over the top of the next brown riseI expect some wonderful thing to flatter my eyes."What's yonder?" I ask of the first wayfarer I meet."Nothing!" he answers, and looks at my travel-worn feet.
"Only more hills and more hills, like the many you've passed,With rough country between, and a poor enough inn at the last."But already I am a-move, for I see he is blind,And I hate that old grumble I've listened to time out of mind.
I've tramped it too long not to know there is truth in it still,That lure of the turn of the road, of the crest of the hill.So I breast me the rise with full hope, well assured I shall seeSome new prospect of joy, some brave venture a tip-toe for me.
For I have come far, and confronted the calm and the strife.I have fared wide, and bit deep in the apple of life.It is sweet at the rind, but oh, sweeter still at the core;And whatever be gained, yet the reach of the morrow is more.
At the crest of the hill I shall hail the new summits to climb.The demand of my vision shall beggar the largess of time.For I know that the higher I press, the wider I view,The more's to be ventured and visioned, in worlds that are new.
So when my feet, failing, shall stumble in ultimate dark,And faint eyes no more the high lift of the pathway shall mark,There under the dew I'll lie down with my dreams, for I knowWhat bright hill-tops the morning will show me, all red in the glow.
Words in this poem
- expect v. t.
- To wait for; to await. [L. expectatum, to look out for, await, expect; ex + out spectare to look at. See Spectacle.]
- yonder adv.
- At a distance, but within view. [OE. yonder, ýonder; cf. OD. ginder, Goth. jaindr there. Yond, adv.]
- wayfarer n.
- One who travels; a traveler; a passenger.
- grumble v. i.
- To murmur or mutter with discontent; to make ill-natured complaints in a low voice and a surly manner. [Cf. LG. grummeln, grumman, D. grommelen, grommen, and F. grommeler, of German origin; cf. W. grwm, murmur, grumble, surly. sq. root35. Cf. Grum, Grim.]
- 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,]
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- largess n.
- Liberality; generosity; bounty. [F. largesse, fr. large. See Large, a.]
- visioned a.
- Having the power of seeing visions; inspired; also, seen in visions. Shelley.
- pathway n.
- A footpath; a beaten track; any path or course. Also used figuratively.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
On the Road is in the public domain. This text is taken from New Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #59897; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Charles G. D. Roberts, On the Road, in New Poems (1919), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #59897, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/roberts-new-poems/on-the-road.html, id L11122.
Form and metre
On the Road is 24 lines in 6 stanzas of 4 lines each. Every stanza rhymes AABB. The metre is anapaestic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 86% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 13.8 syllables. 12% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in anapaestic 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 AABB riseA · eyesA · meetB · feetB
- 2 AABB passedA · lastA · blindB · mindB
- 3 AABB stillA · hillA · seeB · meB
- 4 AABB strifeA · lifeA · coreB · moreB
- 5 AABB climbA · timeA · viewB · newB
- 6 AABB darkA · markA · knowB · glowB
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 anapaestic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Ever just over the top of the next brown rise | 10 | /········· |
| I expect some wonderful thing to flatter my eyes. | 12 | ·˘/·/˘··/˘·· |
| "What's yonder?" I ask of the first wayfarer I meet. | 12 | ·/˘·····/˘·· |
| "Nothing!" he answers, and looks at my travel-worn feet. | 13 | /˘·/˘····/˘·· |
| "Only more hills and more hills, like the many you've passed, | 12 | /˘·······/·· |
| With rough country between, and a poor enough inn at the last." | 15 | ··/˘·····˘/···· |
| But already I am a-move, for I see he is blind, | 14 | ·˘/˘·········· |
| And I hate that old grumble I've listened to time out of mind. | 15 | ·····/˘·/˘····· |
| I've tramped it too long not to know there is truth in it still, | 14 | ·············· |
| That lure of the turn of the road, of the crest of the hill. | 14 | ·············· |
| So I breast me the rise with full hope, well assured I shall see | 15 | ··········˘/··· |
| Some new prospect of joy, some brave venture a tip-toe for me. | 15 | ··/˘····/˘····· |
| For I have come far, and confronted the calm and the strife. | 14 | ······˘/˘····· |
| I have fared wide, and bit deep in the apple of life. | 13 | ·········/˘·· |
| It is sweet at the rind, but oh, sweeter still at the core; | 14 | ········/˘···· |
| And whatever be gained, yet the reach of the morrow is more. | 15 | ··/˘·······/˘·· |
| At the crest of the hill I shall hail the new summits to climb. | 15 | ···········/˘·· |
| The demand of my vision shall beggar the largess of time. | 15 | ·˘/··/˘·/˘·/˘·· |
| For I know that the higher I press, the wider I view, | 12 | ·····/···/·· |
| The more's to be ventured and visioned, in worlds that are new. | 15 | ·/···/˘·/˘····· |
| So when my feet, failing, shall stumble in ultimate dark, | 13 | ····/˘·/˘·/˘· |
| And faint eyes no more the high lift of the pathway shall mark, | 14 | ··········/··· |
| There under the dew I'll lie down with my dreams, for I know | 14 | ·············· |
| What bright hill-tops the morning will show me, all red in the glow. | 15 | ·····/˘········ |
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