On the Drapier. By Dr. Dunkin
Undone by fools at home, abroad by knaves,The isle of saints became the land of slaves,Trembling beneath her proud oppressor's hand;But, when thy reason thunder'd through the land,Then all the public spirit breathed in thee,And all, except the sons of guilt, were free.Blest isle, blest patriot, ever glorious strife!You gave her freedom, as she gave you life!Thus Cato fought, whom Brutus copied well,And with those rights for which you stand, he fell.
"Or if, when this book shall be offer'd to sale,Any printer will stop it, the bard will not failTo make over the issues and profits accruingFrom thence to the printer, for his care in so doing;Provided he first to the poet will send it,
Words in this poem
- undone a.
- Not done or performed; neglected. [Pref. un- not + done.]
- isle v. t.
- To cause to become an island, or like an island; to surround or encompass; to island.
- glorious a.
- Exhibiting attributes, qualities, or acts that are worthy of or receive glory; noble; praiseworthy; excellent; splendid; illustrious; inspiring admiration; as, glorious deeds. [OF. glorios, glorious, F. glorieux, fr. L. gloriosus. See Glory, n.]
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- 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
On the Drapier. By Dr. Dunkin 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, On the Drapier. By Dr. Dunkin, in Cadenus and Vanessa, and Other Poems (1710–1745), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13621, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/swift-poems/on-the-drapier-by-dr-dunkin.html, id L09441.
Form and metre
On the Drapier. By Dr. Dunkin is 15 lines in 2 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 82%). 90% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.5 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 13% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See 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 AABBCCDDEE knavesA · slavesA · handB · landB · theeC · freeC · strifeD · lifeD · wellE · fellE
- 2 AABB- saleA · failA · accruingB · doingB · it
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Undone by fools at home, abroad by knaves, | 10 | ˘/····˘/·· |
| The isle of saints became the land of slaves, | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Trembling beneath her proud oppressor's hand; | 10 | /˘····˘/˘· |
| But, when thy reason thunder'd through the land, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Then all the public spirit breathed in thee, | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| And all, except the sons of guilt, were free. | 10 | ·········· |
| Blest isle, blest patriot, ever glorious strife! | 10 | ···/˘˘//˘· |
| You gave her freedom, as she gave you life! | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Thus Cato fought, whom Brutus copied well, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘/˘· |
| And with those rights for which you stand, he fell. | 10 | ·········· |
| "Or if, when this book shall be offer'd to sale, | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| Any printer will stop it, the bard will not fail | 12 | /˘/˘········ |
| To make over the issues and profits accruing | 12 | ····/˘·/˘˘/˘ |
| From thence to the printer, for his care in so doing; | 12 | ····/˘·····/ |
| Provided he first to the poet will send it, | 12 | ˘/˘····/˘··· |
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.