The Description of a Salamander, 1705
As mastiff dogs, in modern phrase, areCall'd Pompey, Scipio, and Caesar;As pies and daws are often styl'dWith Christian nicknames, like a child;As we say Monsieur to an ape,Without offence to human shape;So men have got, from bird and brute,Names that would best their nature suit.The Lion, Eagle, Fox, and Boar,Were heroes' titles heretofore,Bestow'd as hi'roglyphics fitTo show their valour, strength, or wit:For what is understood by fame,Besides the getting of a name?But, e'er since men invented guns,A diff'rent way their fancy runs:To paint a hero, we inquireFor something that will conquer fire.Would you describe Turenne or Trump?Think of a bucket or a pump.Are these too low?--then find out grander,Call my LORD CUTTS a Salamander.'Tis well;--but since we live amongDetractors with an evil tongue,Who may object against the term,Pliny shall prove what we affirm:Pliny shall prove, and we'll apply,And I'll be judg'd by standers by.First, then, our author has definedThis reptile of the serpent kind,With gaudy coat, and shining train;But loathsome spots his body stain:Out from some hole obscure he flies,When rains descend, and tempests rise,Till the sun clears the air; and thenCrawls back neglected to his den.So, when the war has raised a storm,I've seen a snake in human form,All stain'd with infamy and vice,Leap from the dunghill in a trice,Burnish and make a gaudy show,Become a general, peer, and beau,Till peace has made the sky serene,Then shrink into its hole again."All this we grant--why then, look yonder,Sure that must be a Salamander!"Further, we are by Pliny told,This serpent is extremely cold;So cold, that, put it in the fire,'Twill make the very flames expire:Besides, it spues a filthy froth(Whether thro' rage or lust or both)Of matter purulent and white,Which, happening on the skin to light,And there corrupting to a wound,Spreads leprosy and baldness round.So have I seen a batter'd beau,By age and claps grown cold as snow,Whose breath or touch, where'er he came,Blew out love's torch, or chill'd the flame:And should some nymph, who ne'er was cruel,Like Carleton cheap, or famed Du-Ruel,Receive the filth which he ejects,She soon would find the same effectsHer tainted carcass to pursue,As from the Salamander's spue;A dismal shedding of her locks,And, if no leprosy, a pox."Then I'll appeal to each bystander,If this be not a Salamander?"
Words in this poem
- monsieur n.
- The common title of civility in France in speaking to, or of, a man; Mr. or Sir. [Represented by the abbreviation M. or Mons. in the singular, and by MM. or Messrs. in the plural.] [F., fr. mon my + Sieur, abbrev. of seigneur lord. See Monseigneur.]
- offence n.
- The act of offending in any sense; esp., a crime or a sin, an affront or an injury. [F., fr. L. offensa. See Offend.]
- 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,]
- dunghill n.
- A heap of dung.
- trice v. t.
- To pull; to haul; to drag; to pull away. [OE. trisen; of Scand. or Low German origin; cf. Sw. trissa a sheave, pulley, triss a spritsail brace, Dan. tridse a pulley, tridse to haul by means of a pulley,]
- burnish v. t.
- To cause to shine; to make smooth and bright; to polish; specifically, to polish by rubbing with something hard and smooth; as, to burnish brass or paper. [OE. burnischen, burnissen, burnen, OF. burnir, brunir, to make brown, polish, F. brunir, fr. F. brun brown, fr. OHG. br; cf. MHG. briunen to make brown, polish.]
- yonder adv.
- At a distance, but within view. [OE. yonder, ýonder; cf. OD. ginder, Goth. jaindr there. Yond, adv.]
- lust v. i.
- To list; to like. [AS. lystan. See Lust, n., and cf. List to choose.]
- claps v. t.
- Variant of Clasp
- carcass n.
- A dead body, whether of man or beast; a corpse; now commonly the dead body of a beast. [F. carcasse, fr. It. carcassa, fr. L. caro flesh + capsa chest, box, case. Cf. Carnal, Case a sheath.]
- dismal a.
- Fatal; ill-omened; unlucky. [Formerly a noun; e. g., "I trow it was in the dismalle." Chaucer. Of uncertain origin; but perh. (as suggested by Skeat) from OF. disme, F. dîme, tithe, the phr]
- bystander n.
- One who stands near; a spectator; one who has no concern with the business transacting. [By + stander, equiv. to stander-by; cf. AS. big-standan to stand by or near.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Description of a Salamander, 1705 is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Volume 1, Project Gutenberg ebook #14353; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Jonathan Swift, The Description of a Salamander, 1705, in On Poetry: A Rhapsody, and Other Poems (1727), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #14353, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/swift-poems-vol1/the-description-of-a-salamander-1705.html, id L24485.
Form and metre
The Description of a Salamander, 1705 is 70 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 83% 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 --AABBCCDDEEFFGG--HHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQRRSS----TT----UUVVWWXXYYZZaabbcc are · caesar · styl'dA · childA · apeB · shapeB · bruteC · suitC · boarD · heretoforeD · fitE · witE · fameF · nameF · gunsG · runsG · inquire · fire · trumpH · pumpH · granderI · salamanderI · amongJ · tongueJ · termK · affirmK · applyL · byL · definedM · kindM · trainN · stainN · fliesO · riseO · thenP · denP · stormQ · formQ · viceR · triceR · showS · beauS · serene · again · yonder · salamander · toldT · coldT · fire · expire · froth · both · whiteU · lightU · woundV · roundV · beauW · snowW · cameX · flameX · cruelY · ruelY · ejectsZ · effectsZ · pursuea · spuea · locksb · poxb · bystanderc · salamanderc
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 |
|---|---|---|
| As mastiff dogs, in modern phrase, are | 9 | ·/˘··/˘·· |
| Call'd Pompey, Scipio, and Caesar; | 9 | ·/˘/˘˘·/˘ |
| As pies and daws are often styl'd | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| With Christian nicknames, like a child; | 8 | ·/˘/···· |
| As we say Monsieur to an ape, | 8 | ···˘/··· |
| Without offence to human shape; | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| So men have got, from bird and brute, | 8 | ········ |
| Names that would best their nature suit. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The Lion, Eagle, Fox, and Boar, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Were heroes' titles heretofore, | 8 | ·/˘/˘·˘/ |
| Bestow'd as hi'roglyphics fit | 8 | ˘/······ |
| To show their valour, strength, or wit: | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| For what is understood by fame, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| Besides the getting of a name? | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| But, e'er since men invented guns, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| A diff'rent way their fancy runs: | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| To paint a hero, we inquire | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| For something that will conquer fire. | 9 | ·/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Would you describe Turenne or Trump? | 8 | ··˘//˘·· |
| Think of a bucket or a pump. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Are these too low?--then find out grander, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Call my LORD CUTTS a Salamander. | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| 'Tis well;--but since we live among | 8 | ········ |
| Detractors with an evil tongue, | 8 | ˘/˘··/˘· |
| Who may object against the term, | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| Pliny shall prove what we affirm: | 8 | /˘····˘/ |
| Pliny shall prove, and we'll apply, | 8 | /˘····˘/ |
| And I'll be judg'd by standers by. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| First, then, our author has defined | 8 | ··//˘·˘/ |
| This reptile of the serpent kind, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| With gaudy coat, and shining train; | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| But loathsome spots his body stain: | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Out from some hole obscure he flies, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| When rains descend, and tempests rise, | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| Till the sun clears the air; and then | 8 | ········ |
| Crawls back neglected to his den. | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| So, when the war has raised a storm, | 8 | ········ |
| I've seen a snake in human form, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| All stain'd with infamy and vice, | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| Leap from the dunghill in a trice, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Burnish and make a gaudy show, | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| Become a general, peer, and beau, | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| Till peace has made the sky serene, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Then shrink into its hole again. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| "All this we grant--why then, look yonder, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Sure that must be a Salamander!" | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| Further, we are by Pliny told, | 8 | /˘···/˘· |
| This serpent is extremely cold; | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| So cold, that, put it in the fire, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| 'Twill make the very flames expire: | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Besides, it spues a filthy froth | 8 | ˘/···/˘· |
| (Whether thro' rage or lust or both) | 8 | ········ |
| Of matter purulent and white, | 8 | ·/˘/˘˘·· |
| Which, happening on the skin to light, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And there corrupting to a wound, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Spreads leprosy and baldness round. | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘· |
| So have I seen a batter'd beau, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| By age and claps grown cold as snow, | 8 | ········ |
| Whose breath or touch, where'er he came, | 9 | ····˘˘/·· |
| Blew out love's torch, or chill'd the flame: | 8 | ········ |
| And should some nymph, who ne'er was cruel, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Like Carleton cheap, or famed Du-Ruel, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Receive the filth which he ejects, | 8 | ˘/····˘/ |
| She soon would find the same effects | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Her tainted carcass to pursue, | 8 | ·/˘/˘·˘/ |
| As from the Salamander's spue; | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| A dismal shedding of her locks, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| And, if no leprosy, a pox. | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| "Then I'll appeal to each bystander, | 9 | ··˘/··/·˘ |
| If this be not a Salamander?" | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
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.