Analysis of Keep A-Pluggin' Away
Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906
I'VE a humble little motto
That is homely, though it's true, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
It's a thing when I've an object
That I always try to do, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
When you've rising storms to quell,
When opposing waters swell,
It will never fail to tell, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
If the hills are high before
And the paths are hard to climb,
Keep a-pluggin' away.
And remember that successes
Come to him who bides his time, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
From the greatest to the least,
None are from the rule released.
Be thou toiler, poet, priest,
Keep a-pluggin' away.
Delve away beneath the surface,
There is treasure farther down, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
Let the rain come down in torrents,
Let the threat'ning heavens frown,
Keep a-pluggin' away.
When the clouds have rolled away,
There will come a brighter day
All your labor to repay, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
There 'll be lots of sneers to swallow.
There'll be lots of pain to bear, —
Keep a-pluggin' away.
If you've got your eye on heaven,
Some bright day you'll wake up there,
Keep a-pluggin' away.
Perseverance still is king;
Time its sure reward will bring;
Work and wait unwearying,—
Keep a-pluggin' away.
Scheme | abCdbCeeeCfgChgCiiiCjkClkCcccCamCnmCoooC |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Etheree (33%) |
Metre | 10101010 1110111 10101 10111110 111111 10101 1110111 1010101 1110111 10101 1011101 0011111 10101 00101010 1111111 10101 1010101 1110101 111101 10101 10101010 1110101 10101 10111010 1011101 10101 1011101 1110101 1110101 10101 111111110 10111111 10101 11111110 1111111 10101 010111 1110111 1011 10101 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 1,151 |
Words | 209 |
Sentences | 15 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 40 |
Lines Amount | 40 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 879 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 206 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 25, 2023
- 1:05 min read
- 606 Views
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"Keep A-Pluggin' Away" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 13 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28764/keep-a-pluggin%27-away>.
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