Atherton’s Gambit
The master played the bishop’s pawn,For jest, while Atherton looked on;The master played this way and that,And Atherton, amazed thereat,Said “Now I have a thing in viewThat will enlighten one or two,And make a difference or soIn what it is they do not know.”
The morning stars together sangAnd forth a mighty music rang--Not heard by many, save as toldAgain through magic manifold,By such a few as have to playFor others, in the Master’s way,The music that the Master madeWhen all the morning stars obeyed.
Atherton played the bishop’s pawnWhile more than one or two looked on;Atherton played this way and that,And many a friend, amused thereat,Went on about his businessNor cared for Atherton the less;A few stood longer by the game,With Atherton to them the same.
The morning stars are singing still,To crown, to challenge, and to kill;And if perforce there falls a voiceOn pious ears that have no choiceExcept to urge an erring handTo wreak its homage on the land,Who of us that is worth his whileWill, if he listen, more than smile?
Who of us, being what he is,May scoff at others’ ecstasies?However we may shine to-day,More-shining ones are on the way;And so it were not wholly wellTo be at odds with Azrael,--Nor were it kind of any oneTo sing the end of Atherton.
Words in this poem
- jest n.
- A deed; an action; a gest. [OE. jeste, geste, deed, action, story, tale, OF. geste, LL. gesta, orig., exploits, neut. pl. from L. gestus, p. p. of gerere to bear, carry, accomplish, perfor]
- thereat adv.
- At that place; there.
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- perforce v. t.
- To force; to compel.
- wreak v. i.
- To reck; to care.
- odds n.
- Difference in favor of one and against another; excess of one of two things or numbers over the other; inequality; advantage; superiority; hence, excess of chances; probability. [See Odd, a.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Atherton’s Gambit is in the public domain. This text is taken from The town down the river, Project Gutenberg ebook #76699; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Edwin Arlington Robinson, Atherton’s Gambit, in The Town Down the River (1910), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #76699, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/robinson-town-down-river/atherton-s-gambit.html, id L17215.
Form and metre
Atherton’s Gambit is 40 lines in 5 stanzas of 8 lines each. It is in rhyming couplets, 85% of the lines: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.0 syllables. 3 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 35% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
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 AA--BBCC pawnA · onA · that · thereat · viewB · twoB · soC · knowC
- 2 AABBCCDD sangA · rangA · toldB · manifoldB · playC · wayC · madeD · obeyedD
- 3 AA--BBCC pawnA · onA · that · thereat · businessB · lessB · gameC · sameC
- 4 AABBCCDD stillA · killA · voiceB · choiceB · handC · landC · whileD · smileD
- 5 AABB--CC isA · ecstasiesA · dayB · wayB · well · azrael · oneC · athertonC
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 |
|---|---|---|
| The master played the bishop’s pawn, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| For jest, while Atherton looked on; | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| The master played this way and that, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And Atherton, amazed thereat, | 8 | ·/˘˘˘/˘/ |
| Said “Now I have a thing in view | 8 | ········ |
| That will enlighten one or two, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| And make a difference or so | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| In what it is they do not know.” | 8 | ········ |
| The morning stars together sang | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| And forth a mighty music rang-- | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Not heard by many, save as told | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Again through magic manifold, | 8 | ˘/·/˘/˘· |
| By such a few as have to play | 8 | ········ |
| For others, in the Master’s way, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| The music that the Master made | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| When all the morning stars obeyed. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Atherton played the bishop’s pawn | 8 | /˘˘··/˘· |
| While more than one or two looked on; | 8 | ········ |
| Atherton played this way and that, | 8 | /˘˘····· |
| And many a friend, amused thereat, | 8 | ·/··˘/˘/ |
| Went on about his business | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Nor cared for Atherton the less; | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| A few stood longer by the game, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| With Atherton to them the same. | 8 | ·/˘˘···· |
| The morning stars are singing still, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| To crown, to challenge, and to kill; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And if perforce there falls a voice | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| On pious ears that have no choice | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Except to urge an erring hand | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| To wreak its homage on the land, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Who of us that is worth his while | 8 | ········ |
| Will, if he listen, more than smile? | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Who of us, being what he is, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| May scoff at others’ ecstasies? | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| However we may shine to-day, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| More-shining ones are on the way; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And so it were not wholly well | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| To be at odds with Azrael,-- | 7 | ······· |
| Nor were it kind of any one | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| To sing the end of Atherton. | 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.