Dingley and Brent a Song
Dingley and Brent,Wherever they went,Ne'er minded a word that was spoken;Whatever was said,They ne'er troubled their head,But laugh'd at their own silly joking.
Should Solomon wiseIn majesty rise,And show them his wit and his learning;They never would hear,But turn the deaf ear,As a matter they had no concern in.
You tell a good jest,And please all the rest;Comes Dingley, and asks you, what was it?And, curious to know,Away she will goTo seek an old rag in the closet.
Words in this poem
- brent n.
- A brant. See Brant. [Cf. Brant.]
- wherever adv.
- At or in whatever place; wheresoever.
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- solomon n.
- One of the kings of Israel, noted for his superior wisdom and magnificent reign; hence, a very wise man.
- 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]
- curious a.
- Difficult to please or satisfy; solicitous to be correct; careful; scrupulous; nice; exact. [OF. curios, curius, F. curieux, L. curiosus careful, inquisitive, fr. cura care. See Cure.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Dingley and Brent a Song is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Volume 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #13621; 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, Dingley and Brent a Song, in Cadenus and Vanessa, and Other Poems (1710–1745), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13621, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/swift-poems/dingley-and-brent-a-song.html, id L09241.
Form and metre
Dingley and Brent a Song is 18 lines in 3 stanzas of 6 lines each. The metre is anapaestic dimeter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 6.5 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 11% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in anapaestic dimeter.
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-BB- brentA · wentA · spoken · saidB · headB · joking
- 2 AA-BB- wiseA · riseA · learning · hearB · earB · in
- 3 AABCCB jestA · restA · itB · knowC · goC · closetB
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 dimeter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Dingley and Brent, | 4 | /˘·· |
| Wherever they went, | 5 | ˘/˘·· |
| Ne'er minded a word that was spoken; | 9 | ·/˘····/˘ |
| Whatever was said, | 5 | ·/˘·· |
| They ne'er troubled their head, | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| But laugh'd at their own silly joking. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| Should Solomon wise | 5 | ·/˘˘· |
| In majesty rise, | 5 | ·/˘˘· |
| And show them his wit and his learning; | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| They never would hear, | 5 | ·/˘·· |
| But turn the deaf ear, | 5 | ····· |
| As a matter they had no concern in. | 10 | ··/˘···˘/· |
| You tell a good jest, | 5 | ····· |
| And please all the rest; | 5 | ····· |
| Comes Dingley, and asks you, what was it? | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| And, curious to know, | 5 | ·/˘·· |
| Away she will go | 5 | ˘/··· |
| To seek an old rag in the closet. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
Notes from the edition 1
The notes to the Poems of Jonathan Swift, Volume II (Project Gutenberg #13621).
- Stanza 1, line 1 Dr. Swift's housekeeper.
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.