In Harbor
Surely there, among the great docks, is peace, my mind;there with the ships moored in the river.Go out, timid child,and snuggle in among the great ships talking so quietly.Maybe you will even fall asleep near them and belifted into one of their laps, and in the morning--There is always the morning in which to remember it all!
Of what are they gossiping? God knows.And God knows it matters little for we cannot understand them.Yet it is certainly of the sea, of that there can be no question.It is a quiet sound. Rest! That’s all I care for now.The smell of them will put us to sleep presently.Smell! It is the sea water mingling here into the river--at least so it seems--perhaps it is something else--but what matter?
The sea water! It is quiet and smooth here!How slowly they move, little by little tryingthe hawsers that drop and groan with their agony.Yes, it is certainly of the high sea they are talking.
Words in this poem
- snuggle v. t.
- To move one way and the other so as to get a close place; to lie close for comfort; to cuddle; to nestle. [Freq. of snug.]
- maybe adv.
- Perhaps; possibly; peradventure. [For it may be.]
- presently adv.
- At present; at this time; now.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
In Harbor is in the public domain. This text is taken from A Book of Poems, Al Que Quiere!, Project Gutenberg ebook #51997; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: William Carlos Williams, In Harbor, in Al Que Quiere! (1917), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #51997, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/williams-al-que-quiere/in-harbor.html, id L01096.
Form and metre
In Harbor is 18 lines in 3 verse paragraphs. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. 79% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 12.8 syllables. 10 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 11% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
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.
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. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Surely there, among the great docks, is peace, my mind; | 12 | /˘·········· |
| there with the ships moored in the river. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Go out, timid child, | 5 | ··/˘· |
| and snuggle in among the great ships talking so quietly. | 15 | ·/˘······/˘·/˘˘ |
| Maybe you will even fall asleep near them and be | 13 | /˘··/˘·˘/···· |
| lifted into one of their laps, and in the morning-- | 13 | /˘·········/˘ |
| There is always the morning in which to remember it all! | 15 | ··/··/˘···˘/˘·· |
| Of what are they gossiping? God knows. | 9 | ····/˘˘·· |
| And God knows it matters little for we cannot understand them. | 16 | ····/˘/˘··/˘·˘/· |
| Yet it is certainly of the sea, of that there can be no question. | 17 | ···/˘˘·········/˘ |
| It is a quiet sound. Rest! That’s all I care for now. | 13 | ···/˘········ |
| The smell of them will put us to sleep presently. | 12 | ·········/˘˘ |
| Smell! It is the sea water mingling here into the river-- | 16 | ·····/˘/˘˘····/˘ |
| at least so it seems--perhaps it is something else--but what matter? | 16 | ·····˘/··/˘···/˘ |
| The sea water! It is quiet and smooth here! | 11 | ··/˘··/˘··· |
| How slowly they move, little by little trying | 12 | ·/˘··/˘·/˘/˘ |
| the hawsers that drop and groan with their agony. | 12 | ·········/˘˘ |
| Yes, it is certainly of the high sea they are talking. | 14 | ···/˘˘······/˘ |
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.