Analysis of Merry Christmas, My Sweet!
Now, Christmas Eve's no time to bring home a collie
You plucked from the pound. And compounding my folly,
This old girl was skeletal, haggard and lank,
With a rheumatoid gait and a coat downright dank.
But my Linda had said she'd be two hours late
And I'd already gotten (a hedge against fate)
That jewel-laden pin that she'd eyed in the store.
So I carried in "April", who flopped on the floor
While I wrapped Linda's presents with never an inkling,
Till I turned and saw April contentedly tinkling
On presents and tree. And, much worse, saw my spouse,
right on time, with a wave, driving up to the house.
I was staring in shock at impending divorce
And I HAD to do something...I'd hide her, of course!
So I thrust April into my bathroom and then
Galloped back up the hall just as Linda came in.
"Well hello, darling! Guess what I brought home for you?
Something special, a Christmas Eve present or two!"
But she held up a hand while she sniffed at the tree,
Then her face changed and, turning, she looked straight at me.
Then she strode down the hall to the only door closed,
And threw it wide open. And there, as if posed,
Was a tail-wagging April. A sub-zero silence
That lasted a year. Fearing imminent violence,
I turned on the charm. "Merry Christmas, my sweet!
'Course it's just for the night---", I had started to bleat,
When the miracle happened. I saw Linda take
April's paw and then give it a comradely shake.
"Well, let's bathe her," said Linda, "come on, look alive!
We've got plenty of time till your parents arrive."
And whenever we talk of that Christmas, the thing
That she says she loved best was..."That pin. I LOVE bling!"
Scheme | AABB CCDD EEFF GGXX HHAA IIJJ XCKK LLEB |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (88%) |
Metre | 110111111010 111010010110 11111001001 1010100111 111011111101 010101001011 110101111001 111001011101 1111010110110 11101100100100 11001011111 111101101101 111001101001 0111111011 11110011101 101101111010 101101111111 101001011011 111101111101 101101011111 111101101011 01111001111 1011010011010 1100110100100 11101101011 111101111011 101001011101 1010111011 111011011101 111011111001 001011111001 11111111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,612 |
Words | 306 |
Sentences | 25 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 39 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 157 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 38 |
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Submitted on May 01, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:33 min read
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"Merry Christmas, My Sweet!" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/78443/merry-christmas%2C-my-sweet%21>.
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