Analysis of Barleymow And Dunghill.

John Gay 1685 – 1732



How many saucy beaux we meet
'Twixt Westminster and Aldgate-street!
Rascals - the mushrooms of a day,
Who sprung and shared the South Sea prey,
Nor in their zenith condescend
To own or know the humble friend.

A careful farmer took his way
Across his yard at break of day:
He leant a moment o'er the rail,
To hear the music of the flail;
In his quick eye he viewed his stock, -
The geese, the hogs, the fleecy flock.

A barleymow there, fat as mutton,
Then held her master by the button:
"Master, my heart and soul are wrung - till
They can't abide that dirty dunghill:
Master, you know I make your beer -
You boast of me at Christmas cheer;
Then why insult me and disgrace me,
And next to that vile dunghill place me?
By Jove! it gives my nose offence:
Command the hinds to cart it hence."

"You stupid Barleymow," said Dunghill;
"You talk about your heart and wrung-ill:
Where would you be, I'd like to know,
Had I not fed and made you grow?
You of October brew brag - pshaw!
You would have been a husk of straw.
And now, instead of gratitude,
You rail in this ungrateful mood."
  


Scheme AABBCC BBDDEE FFGDHHIIJJ DGKKXXLL
Poetic Form Etheree  (33%)
Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 11010111 110011 10010101 11010111 1011001 11110101 01010111 01111111 1100101001 11010101 01111111 01010101 0111110 110101010 101101111 11011101 10111111 11111101 110110011 01111111 1111111 01011111 110111 110111011 11111111 11110111 11010111 11110111 0101110 11010101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,059
Words 212
Sentences 11
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 10, 8
Lines Amount 30
Letters per line (avg) 27
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 205
Words per stanza (avg) 52
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Submitted on August 03, 2020

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:03 min read
5

John Gay

John Gay, a cousin of the poet John Gay, was an English philosopher, biblical scholar and Church of England clergyman. more…

All John Gay poems | John Gay Books

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