Analysis of Cobbler and Stork
Eugene Field 1850 (St. Louis) – 1895 (Chicago)
Stork, I am justly wroth,
For thou hast wronged me sore;
The ash roof-tree that shelters thee
Shall shelter thee no more!
Full fifty years I 've dwelt
Upon this honest tree,
And long ago (as people know!)
I brought thy father thee.
What hail hath chilled thy heart,
That thou shouldst bid me go?
Speak out, I pray--then I 'll away,
Since thou commandest so.
Thou tellest of the time
When, wheeling from the west,
This hut thou sought'st and one thou brought'st
Unto a mother's breast.
I was the wretched child
Was fetched that dismal morn--
'T were better die than be (as I)
To life of misery born!
And hadst thou borne me on
Still farther up the town,
A king I 'd be of high degree,
And wear a golden crown!
For yonder lives the prince
Was brought that selfsame day:
How happy he, while--look at me!
I toil my life away!
And see my little boy--
To what estate he 's born!
Why, when I die no hoard leave I
But poverty and scorn.
And thou hast done it all--
I might have been a king
And ruled in state, but for thy hate,
Thou base, perfidious thing!
Since, cobbler, thou dost speak
Of one thou lovest well,
Hear of that king what grievous thing
This very morn befell.
Whilst round thy homely bench
Thy well-belovèd played,
In yonder hall beneath a pall
A little one was laid;
Thy well-belovèd's face
Was rosy with delight,
But 'neath that pall in yonder hall
The little face is white;
Whilst by a merry voice
Thy soul is filled with cheer,
Another weeps for one that sleeps
All mute and cold anear;
One father hath his hope,
And one is childless now:
He wears a crown and rules a town--
Only a cobbler thou!
Wouldst thou exchange thy lot
At price of such a woe?
I'll nest no more above thy door,
But, as thou bidst me, go.
Nay, stork! thou shalt remain--
I mean not what I said;
Good neighbors we must always be.
So make thy home o'erhead.
I would not change my bench
For any monarch's throne,
Nor sacrifice at any price
My darling and my own!
Stork! on my roof-tree bide,
That, seeing thee anear,
I 'll thankful be God sent by thee
Me and my darling here!
Scheme | ABAB CDEAXEFE XGXGXHIHXJDJXFDFXHIHKLXL XMLMNOXOXPKPXXXBXXJAXEBE XXDCNQXQXBAX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 111101 111111 01111101 110111 1101111 011101 01011101 111101 111111 111111 111111101 1111 11101 110101 1111101111 100101 110101 111101 101011111 1111001 011111 110101 011111101 010101 110101 11111 11011111 111101 011101 1101111 11111111 110001 011111 111101 01011111 1111 110111 11111 11111101 110101 111101 111011 01010101 010111 111011 110101 11110101 010111 110101 111111 01011111 11011 110111 011101 11010101 100101 110111 111101 11110111 111111 111101 111111 1101111 11111 111111 11011 1101101 110011 111111 11011 111011111 101101 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 2,133 |
Words | 402 |
Sentences | 24 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 8, 24, 24, 12 |
Lines Amount | 72 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 313 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 79 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:02 min read
- 143 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Cobbler and Stork" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/12927/cobbler-and-stork>.
Discuss this Eugene Field poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In