Analysis of The Jolly Dead March
Henry Lawson 1867 (Grenfell) – 1922 (Sydney)
If I ever be worthy or famous—
Which I’m sadly beginning to doubt—
When the angel whose place ’tis to name us
Shall say to my spirit, ‘Pass out!’
I wish for no sniv’lling about me
(My work was the work of the land),
But I hope that my country will shout me
The price of a decent brass band.
Thump! thump! of the drum and ‘Ta-ra-rit,’
Thump! thump! and the music—it’s grand,
If only in dreams, or in spirit,
To ride or march after the band!
And myself and my mourners go straying,
And strolling and drifting along
With a band in the front of us playing
The tune of an old battle song!
I ask for no ‘turn-out’ to bear me;
I ask not for railings or slabs,
And spare me! my country—oh, spare me!
The hearse and the long string of cabs!
I ask not the baton or ‘starts’ of
The bore with the musical ear,
But the music that’s blown from the hearts of
The men who work hard and drink beer.
And let ’em strike up ‘Annie Laurie,’
And let them burst out with ‘Lang Syne’—
Twin voices of sadness and glory,
That have ever been likings of mine.
And give the French war-hymn deep-throated
The Watch of the Germans between,
And let the last mile be devoted
To ‘Britannia’ and ‘Wearing the Green.’
And if, in the end—more’s the pity—
There is fame more than money to spare—
There’s a van-man I know in the city
Who’ll convey me, right side up with care.
True sons of Australia, and noble,
Have gone from the long dusty way,
While the sole mourner fought down his trouble
With his pipe on the shaft of the dray.
But let them strike up ‘Annie Laurie,’ &c.
And my spirit will join the procession—
Will pause, if it may, on the brink—
Nor feel the least shade of depression
When the mourners drop out for a drink;
It may be a hot day in December,
Or a cold day in June it may be,
And the drink will but help them remember
The good points the world missed in me.
And help ’em to love ‘Annie Laurie,’
And help ’em to raise ‘Auld Lang Syne,’ &c.
‘Unhook the West Port’ for an orphan,
An old digger chorus revive—
If you don’t hear a whoop from the coffin,
I am not being buried alive.
But I’ll go with a spirit less bitter
Than mine own on the earth may have been,
And, perhaps, to save trouble, Saint Peter
Will pass me, two comrades between.
And let them strike up ‘Annie Laurie,’
And let ’em burst out with ‘Lang Syne,’
Twin voices of sadness and glory
That have ever been likings of mine.
Let them swell the French war-hymn deep-throated
(And I’ll not buck at ‘God Save the Queen’),
But let the last mile be devoted
To ‘Britannia’ and ‘Wearing the Green.’
Thump! thump! of the drums we inherit—
War-drums of my dreams! Oh it’s grand,
If only in fancy or spirit,
To ride or march after a band!
And we, the World-Battlers, go straying
And loving and laughing along—
With Hope in the lead of us playing
The tune of a life-battle song!
Scheme | ababcdcdbdedfgfg chchixix cjCJkjlJ cmcmnonoc jpjpqcqccc jrjrqjqj cjCJkjlJ ededfgfg |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 1110110110 111001011 1010111111 11111011 11111011 11101101 1111110111 01101011 111010111 11001011 110011010 11111001 010110110 01001001 1010011110 01111101 111111111 11111011 011110111 01001111 111001111 01101001 1010111011 01111011 011111010 01111111 110110010 11101111 010111110 01101001 010111010 1010001001 010011010 111111011 1011110010 101111111 111010010 11101101 1011011110 111101101 1111110101 0110110010 11111101 110111010 101011101 1110110010 101101111 0011111010 01101101 011111010 011111111 010111110 11101001 1111011010 111101001 1111010110 111101111 0011110110 1111101 011111010 01111111 110110010 11101111 1110111110 011111101 110111010 1010001001 111011010 11111111 110010110 11111001 01011110 01001001 110011110 01101101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 2,880 |
Words | 555 |
Sentences | 29 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 16, 8, 8, 9, 10, 8, 8, 8 |
Lines Amount | 75 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 265 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 68 |
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:46 min read
- 91 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Jolly Dead March" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/18018/the-jolly-dead-march>.
Discuss this Henry Lawson 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