Analysis of A Message: Armistice Day 1936
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
I got dreamin' that a message come in some mysterious way
From one ole pal of mine, gone West this many an' many a day,
A bloke the name of Ginger Mick, a fightin' cove I knoo.
(But 'e's Digger Corporal Mick Esquire, late A.I.F., to you)
'E got 'is on Gallipoli, an' sleeps there with the best,
Not leavin' very much be'ind, excep' one small request.
'Look after things,' was all 'e said, when 'e was mortal 'urt.
Dead sure 'is mates - that's me an' you - would never do 'im dirt.
(Think of it in the Silence, with yer 'eads bowed low:
Do we keep the unspoke compact with the men we used to know?)
For I dreams it in the silence of a dark Remembrance Eve;
An' the message seems to tell me it is gettin' late to grieve.
'But if you seem to miss us still, then get the sob-stuff o'er,
An' think about the things wot we went an' fought a war.
Send up a pray`r an' dropp a tear an' bend a reverent knee -
(Says Digger Corporal Ginger Mick, A.I.F., says 'e)
But is them things we fought for still the things most dear to you:
The honor an' the glory an' the mateship that we knew?'
(Think of it in the Silence, when the Last Post plays -
The splendid glimpse of Truth we 'ad, once, in the bitter days)
'Grief is a passin' compliment,' the message seems to say;
But tears don't carry on the job for men that drift away.
We 'ad small time or taste for such where guns was raisin' 'ell,
When we got busy plantin' blokes an' wishin' 'em farewell.
We blowed sad music over 'em - plain Digs, or Brass 'at Knuts -
But we played a quick-step comin' back, to show we 'ad the guts.
Our speech was rough, our ways was tough - tough as our bloody game.
Are the rough, tough, lads still honored, like when the Terror came?'
(Think of it, in the Silence, when their spirits hover near:
The vision and the vows that held while still the land knew fear.)
'E's sleepin' on Gallipoli. At least, 'is bones is there:
Bones worth a ton of livin' flesh that won't play fair -
Not till the Terror comes again. 'An' when it does,' says 'e,
If gods you've worshipped let you down, well, don't blame me.'
'E's seen a lot, an' learned a lot most like, where 'e 'as gone;
An' 'eaven 'elp us when we meet if we ain't carried on.
A vulgar person, Ginger Mick, a fightin' cove I knoo -
(But Digger Corporal Ginger Mick, if you please, to you.)
(Think of it in the Silence; an', if you pray, pray deep
That all we 'ave an' all we are old loyalties shall keep.
Scheme | AABCDDDX XB EEXXBFCB GG AAHHIIJJ KK LLFFBBBC MM |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 111101010101001 1111111111011001 0101110101111 1110100111111 11111111101 11101111101 11011111111101 11111111110111 111001011111 11101101011111 111100101010101 10101111111111 111111111101110 1101011111101 110111011101001 110100101111 11111111011111 0101010101111 111001010111 01011111100101 1101100010111 11110101111101 11111111111101 11110111101 11110101111111 11101111111101 10111101111110101 10111110110101 11100101110101 01000111110111 1111111111 11011111111 11010101111111 111101111111 11011101111111 1111111111101 0101010101111 11010010111111 1110010111111 11111111110011 |
Closest metre | Iambic heptameter |
Characters | 2,430 |
Words | 492 |
Sentences | 27 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 2, 8, 2, 8, 2, 8, 2 |
Lines Amount | 40 |
Letters per line (avg) | 44 |
Words per line (avg) | 12 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 221 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 60 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:29 min read
- 49 Views
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"A Message: Armistice Day 1936" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/6155/a-message%3A-armistice-day-1936>.
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