Analysis of ER VOTO (The Vow)

Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli 1791 (Rome) – 1863



Senti st'antra. A Ssan Pietro e Marcellino
Ce stanno certe moniche befane,
C'aveveno pe voto er contentino
De maggnà ttutto-quanto co le mane.

Vedi si una forchetta e un cucchiarino,
Si un cortelluccio pe ttajacce er pane,
Abbi da offenne Iddio! N'antro tantino
Leccaveno cor muso com'er cane!

Pio Ottavo però, bona-momoria,
Che vedde una matina quer porcaro,
Je disse: "Madre, e che vò dì sta storia?

Sete state avvezzate ar monnezzaro?!
Che voto! un cazzo. A dio pò dasse groria
Puro co la forchetta e cor cucchiaro".

Listen to this one. At San Pietro e Marcellino's church
There are such nasty nuns,
Who, as a vow, had the bad habit
Of eating food using their bare hands [1] .

Just imagine if a fork and a spoon,
A small knife for cutting bread,
Could be an offence to God! They almost
Licked the dish like dogs!

But the late Pius the Eighth,
Who one day saw that filth,
Told them: "Mother, what does all this mean?

Have you been brought up in a dump?
Damn that vow! God can be praised
Although using a fork and a spoon".


Scheme AAAB ABAB CAC CCC XXXX DXXX XXX XXD
Poetic Form
Metre 110101010010 11111 11101 1111101 11101111 1111101 111111 111101 1011101 111011010 111111111 11111 111101111 1111111 1011111010111 111101 110110110 1101101111 1010101001 0111101 11111111 10111 1011001 111111 111011111 11111001 1111111 11001001
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,045
Words 191
Sentences 18
Stanzas 8
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 3, 3, 4, 4, 3, 3
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 28
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 98
Words per stanza (avg) 24
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

58 sec read
97

Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli

Giuseppe Francesco Antonio Maria Gioachino Raimondo Belli was an Italian poet, famous for his sonnets in Romanesco, the dialect of Rome. more…

All Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli poems | Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli Books

0 fans

Discuss this Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

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

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "ER VOTO (The Vow)" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/16109/er-voto-%28the-vow%29>.

    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.
    3
    days
    6
    hours
    48
    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 four original poems for the movie 'Paterson'?
    A Anne Bradstreet
    B Ron Padgett
    C John Berryman
    D Matthew Arnold