Sunday At Hampstead Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: A B CDEF GHIH JKLK MNON NPQP NARA NNSN NTUT NJVJ JNWN NCNC JHXH A YZYZ A2B2A2B2 C2NC2N ND2ND2 A E2KE2KNNNN E2F2E2F2JG2JG2 E2KE2KNH2NH2 E2 NE2I2E2 JJ2UJ2 K2L2M2L2 NN2M2N2 O2NNN INP2N XQ2J IR2IR2 S2 JT2S KU2KU2 V2GN IDM2 KNW2N IX2I E2 NNN JY2Y2 Y2Z2Y2Z2 NY2A3Y2 NB3N N C3D3D3NND2D2NN V YYE3E3VVE3E3Y2Y2Y2 E2 E3 E3E3NNE3E3E3E3NNE3E3I | A |
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AN VERY IDLE IDYLL BY A VERY HUMBLE MEMBER OF THE GREAT AND NOBLE LONDON MOB | B |
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This is the Heath of Hampstead | C |
This is the Dome of Saint Paul s | D |
Beneath on the serried house tops | E |
A chequered luster falls | F |
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And the might city of London | G |
Under the clouds and the light | H |
Seems a low wet beach half shingle | I |
With a few sharp rocks upright | H |
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Here we sit my darling | J |
And dream an hour away | K |
The donkeys are hurried and worried | L |
But we are not donkeys to day | K |
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Through all the weary week dear | M |
We toil in the murk down there | N |
Tied to a desk and a counter | O |
A patient stupid pair | N |
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But on Sunday we slip our thether | N |
And away from the smoke and the smirch | P |
Too grateful to God for His Sabbath | Q |
To shut its hours in a church | P |
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Away to the green green country | N |
Under the open sky | A |
Where the earth s sweet breath is incense | R |
And the lark sings psalms on high | A |
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On Sunday we re Lord and Lady | N |
With ten times the love and glee | N |
Of those pale languid rich ones | S |
Who are always and never free | N |
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The drawl and stare and simper | N |
So fine and cold and staid | T |
Like exquisite waxwork figures | U |
That must be kept in the shade | T |
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We can laugh out loud when merry | N |
We can romp at kiss in the ring | J |
We can take our beer at a public | V |
We can loll on the grass and sing | J |
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Would you grieve very much my darling | J |
If all yon low wet shore | N |
Were drowned by a mighty flood tide | W |
And we never toiled there more | N |
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Wicked there is no sin dear | N |
In an idle dreamer s head | C |
He turns the world topsy turvy | N |
To prove that his soul s not dead | C |
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I am sinking sinking sinking | J |
It s hard to sit upright | H |
Your lap is the softest pillow | X |
Good night my love good night | H |
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II | A |
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How your eyes dazzle down into my soul | Y |
I drink and drink of their deep violet wine | Z |
And ever thirst the more although my whole | Y |
Dazed being whirls in drunkenness divine | Z |
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Pout down your lips for that bewildering smile | A2 |
And kiss me for the interruption Sweet | B2 |
I had escaped you floating for awhile | A2 |
In that far cloud ablaze with living heat | B2 |
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I floated with it though the solemn skies | C2 |
I melted with it up the Crystal Sea | N |
Into the heaven of Heavens and shut my eyes | C2 |
To fell eternal rest enfolding me | N |
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Well I prefer on tyrannous girl down here | N |
You jealous violet eyed Bewitcher you | D2 |
To being lord in Mohammed's seventh sphere | N |
Of meekest hours threescore ten and two | D2 |
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III | A |
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Was it hundreds of years ago my Love | E2 |
Was it thousands of miles away | K |
The two poor creatures we know my Love | E2 |
Were toiling day by day | K |
Were toiling weary weary | N |
With many myriads more | N |
In a City dark and dreary | N |
On a sullen river s shore | N |
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Was it truly a fact or a dream my Love | E2 |
I think my brain still reels | F2 |
And my ears still throbbing seem my Love | E2 |
With the rush and clang of wheels | F2 |
Of vast machinery roaring | J |
Forever in skyless gloom | G2 |
Where the poor slaves peach imploring | J |
Found peace alone in the tomb | G2 |
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Was it hundreds of years ago my Love | E2 |
Was it thousands of miles away | K |
Or was it a dream to show my Love | E2 |
The rapture of today | K |
This day of holy splendor | N |
This Sabbath of rich rest | H2 |
Wherein to God we render | N |
All praise by being blest | H2 |
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IV | E2 |
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Eight of us promised to meet here | N |
And tea together at five | E2 |
And who would ever believe it | I2 |
We are the first to arrive | E2 |
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Oh shame on us in darling | J |
It is a monstrous crime | J2 |
To make a tryst with others | U |
And be before our time | J2 |
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Lizzie is off with William | K2 |
Quite happy for her part | L2 |
Our sugar in her pocket | M2 |
And the sweet love in her heart | L2 |
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Mary and Dick so grandly | N |
Parade suburban streets | N2 |
His waistcoat and her bonnet | M2 |
Proving the best of treats | N2 |
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And Fanny plagues big Robert | O2 |
With tricks of the wildest glee | N |
Fanny you'll get in hot water | N |
If you do not bring us our tea | N |
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Why bless me look at that table | I |
Every one of them there | N |
'Ha here at last we have them | P2 |
The always behindhand pair | N |
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'When the last trumpet solo | X |
Strikes up instead of the lark | Q2 |
They'll turn in their sleep just grunting | J |
Who's up so soon in the dark ' | - |
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Babble and gabble you rabble | I |
A thousand in full yell | R2 |
And this is your Tower of Babel | I |
This not to be finished Hotel | R2 |
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THOMSON'S NOTE Since finished in a fashion The verses were written in | S2 |
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'You should see it in the drawing | J |
You'd think a Palace they make | T2 |
Like the one in the Lady of Lyons | S |
With this pond for the lovely lake ' | - |
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'I wish it wasn't Sunday | K |
There's no amusement at all | U2 |
Who was here Hot cross bun day | K |
We had such an open air ball | U2 |
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'The bands played polkas waltzes | V2 |
Quadrilles it was glorious fun | G |
And each gentleman gave them a penny | N |
After each dance was done ' | - |
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'Mary is going to chapel | I |
And what takes her there do you guess | D |
Her sweet little duck of a bonnet | M2 |
And her new second hand silk dress ' | - |
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'We went to Church one Sunday | K |
But felt we had no right there | N |
For it's only a place for the grand folk | W2 |
Who come in a carriage and pair | N |
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'And I laughed out loud it was shameful | I |
But Fanny said Oh what lives | X2 |
He must have been clever the rascal | I |
To manage seven hundred wives ' | - |
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'Suppose we play Hunt the Slipper ' | - |
'We can't there's the crinoline ' 'Phew | E2 |
Bother it always a nuisance ' | - |
'Hoop de dooden do ' | - |
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'I think I've seen all the girls here | N |
About a thousand or more | N |
But none of them half so pretty | N |
As our own loving four ' | - |
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'Thank you and I've been listening | J |
To lots of the men the knaves | Y2 |
But none of them half such humbugs | Y2 |
As our devoted slaves ' | - |
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'Do you see those purple flushes | Y2 |
The sun will set in state | Z2 |
Up all we must cross to the heath friends | Y2 |
Before it gets too late | Z2 |
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'We will couch in the fern together | N |
And watch for the moon and the stars | Y2 |
And the slim tree tops will be lighted | A3 |
So the boys may light their cigars | Y2 |
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'And while the sunset glory | N |
Burns down in crimson and gold | B3 |
LAZY shall tell us a story | N |
Of his wonderful times of old ' | - |
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V | N |
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Ten thousand years ago 'No more than that ' | - |
Ten thousand years 'The age of Robert's hat ' | - |
'Silence you gods ' 'Pinch Fanny ' 'Now we're good ' | - |
This place where we are sitting was a wood | C3 |
Savage and desert save for one rude home | D3 |
Of wattles plastered with stiff clay and loam | D3 |
And here in front upon the grassy mire | N |
Four naked squaws were squatted round a fire | N |
Then four tall naked wild men crushing through | D2 |
The tangled Underfeed came into view | D2 |
Two of them bent beneath a mighty boar | N |
The third was gashed and bleeding number four | N |
Strutted full drest in war paint 'That was Dick ' | - |
Blue of a devilish pattern laid on thick | V |
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The squaws jumped up to roast the carcass whole | Y |
The braves sank silent stark 'gainst root and bole | Y |
The meat half done they tore it and devoured | E3 |
Sullenly ravenous the women cowered | E3 |
Until their lords had finished then partook | V |
Mist rose all crept into their cabin nook | V |
And staked the month the floor was one broad bed | E3 |
Of rushes dried with fox and bearskins spread | E3 |
Wolves howled and wild cats wailed they snored and so | Y2 |
The long night passed shedding a storm of snow | Y2 |
This very night ten thousand years ago | Y2 |
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VI | E2 |
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Ten thousand years before 'Come draw it mild | E3 |
Don't waste Conk ology like that my child ' | - |
From where we sit to the horizon's bound | E3 |
A level brilliant plain was spread all round | E3 |
As level and as brilliant as a sea | N |
Under the burning sun high as your knee | N |
Aflame with flowers yellow and blue and red | E3 |
Long lines of palm trees marked out there the bed | E3 |
Of a great river and among them gleamed | E3 |
A few grey tents Then four swift horsemen streamed | E3 |
Out of the West magnificent in ire | N |
Churning the meadow into flakes of fire | N |
Brandishing monstrous spears as if in fight | E3 |
They wheeled ducked charged | E3 |
James Thomson
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