Analysis of The Ah Goo Tongue

Ella Wheeler Wilcox 1855 (Janesville) – 1919



The queerest languages known to man,
Sanscrit, Hebrew, Hindoostan,
Are all translated and made as free
And comprehensive as A B C.

Yet the oldest language talked or sung,
The strange mysterious Ah Goo tongue,
The royal language of Babyland
No man living can understand.

Every soul in the world to-day
Was one time anchored in Babyland Bay,
And quarantined there for a year or more
Before he even could step on shore.

And everybody in Babyland Bay
Talks the Ah Goo tongue, so people say,
But once on land-why not a word
Do they understand of it when 'tis heard.

For the fairy rulers of Babyland
Who guard the kingdom on every hand,
Have willed that no one shall keep the key
Who crosses into the Grown-up Sea.

So the sweet court language has never been made
A common parlance of strife or trade,
But is kept in the kingdom where natives come
Versed in the language of Babydom.

They are all of them royal and that is how
The Grown-up people all kneel and bow,
When they hear that language talked or sung-
The strange mysterious Ah Goo tongue.


Scheme aabb cCdd deff eedd ddbb ddgg hhcC
Poetic Form Quatrain 
Metre 01100111 1101 110100111 00101011 101010111 010100111 0101011 1110101 100100111 11110011 010110111 011101111 0100011 101111101 11111101 110111111 10101011 1101011001 111111101 110010111 10111011011 010101111 11100101101 1001011 11111100111 011101101 111110111 010100111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,021
Words 193
Sentences 8
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 118
Words per stanza (avg) 27
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

57 sec read
112

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Ella Wheeler Wilcox was an American author and poet. more…

All Ella Wheeler Wilcox poems | Ella Wheeler Wilcox Books

2 fans

Discuss this Ella Wheeler Wilcox poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Ah Goo Tongue" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/10814/the-ah-goo-tongue>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    7
    hours
    5
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the poem "Fire And Ice"?
    A Gerard Manley Hopkins
    B Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
    C Robert Frost
    D Edgar Allan Poe