Analysis of Sleep On!
William Schwenck Gilbert 1836 – 1911
Fear no unlicensed entry,
Heed no bombastic talk,
While guards the British Sentry
Pall Mall and Birdcage Walk.
Let European thunders
Occasion no alarms,
Though diplomatic blunders
May cause a cry "To arms!"
Sleep on, ye pale civilians;
All thunder-clouds defy:
On Europe's countless millions
The Sentry keeps his eye!
Should foreign-born rapscallions
In London dare to show
Their overgrown battalions,
Be sure I'll let you know.
Should Russians or Norwegians
Pollute our favoured clime
With rough barbaric legions,
I'll mention it in time.
So sleep in peace, civilians,
The Continent defy;
While on its countless millions
The Sentry keeps his eye!
Scheme | ababcdcdefeF cgegehehefeF |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1101010 110101 1101010 110101 101010 010101 101010 110111 1111010 110101 1101010 010111 11011 010111 101010 111111 1101010 011011 1101010 110101 1101010 010001 1111010 010111 |
Closest metre | Iambic trimeter |
Characters | 632 |
Words | 105 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 12, 12 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 22 |
Words per line (avg) | 4 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 261 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 51 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 32 sec read
- 57 Views
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"Sleep On!" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/41266/sleep-on%21>.
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