Thank you for visiting SNEWPapers!
Sign up free
Poem
June 25, 1879
Claiborne Guardian
Homer, Claiborne County, Louisiana
What is this article about?
A narrator observes a drunkard soliloquizing beneath a tree, lamenting his wasted estate, destroyed health, lost friends and family, legal troubles, and descent into despair due to intemperance, vowing to hasten to his end.
Clipping
OCR Quality
95%
Excellent
Full Text
The Drunkard's Soliloquy.
Having passed by the inn, I observed some one at a short distance, beneath a lofty button wood, apparently holding a dialogue with himself. I drew near, observed, and heard the following:
"Who am I! Aye, and what am I, but a wretched outcast, shunned and despised by the wise and good. My estate wasted: constitution destroyed; affairs in ruin: friends absconded: children naked and hungry; wife in tears and comfortless: appetite gone; visage bloated and disgusting; hands and knees tremulous: reason debased; manners become vile: character annihilated! My acquaintances pass by me like strangers! I am tormented by disease: harassed by law suits: teased by creditors: collared by sheriffs: mocked and hunted by tramps and blackguards! I am a hated, filthy sot, companion only to the lowest brute! Nay, the vile brute is exalted, is noble compared to a wretch like me! In all that is esteemed honorable, respectable and worthy in society, I am the mere cinder of a crucible: the very paltry dregs of alembies! Cursed temperance, these are thy fruits! Oppressed nature can hold on no longer! She is about to resign her worthless charge! The horrid grave opens upon me and yawns for its prey. Despair seize me—my brain is on fire! Away, thus, let me haste: and sink, unremembered, down, down, down to—"
Having passed by the inn, I observed some one at a short distance, beneath a lofty button wood, apparently holding a dialogue with himself. I drew near, observed, and heard the following:
"Who am I! Aye, and what am I, but a wretched outcast, shunned and despised by the wise and good. My estate wasted: constitution destroyed; affairs in ruin: friends absconded: children naked and hungry; wife in tears and comfortless: appetite gone; visage bloated and disgusting; hands and knees tremulous: reason debased; manners become vile: character annihilated! My acquaintances pass by me like strangers! I am tormented by disease: harassed by law suits: teased by creditors: collared by sheriffs: mocked and hunted by tramps and blackguards! I am a hated, filthy sot, companion only to the lowest brute! Nay, the vile brute is exalted, is noble compared to a wretch like me! In all that is esteemed honorable, respectable and worthy in society, I am the mere cinder of a crucible: the very paltry dregs of alembies! Cursed temperance, these are thy fruits! Oppressed nature can hold on no longer! She is about to resign her worthless charge! The horrid grave opens upon me and yawns for its prey. Despair seize me—my brain is on fire! Away, thus, let me haste: and sink, unremembered, down, down, down to—"
What sub-type of article is it?
Satire
What themes does it cover?
Temperance Moderation
Moral Virtue
What keywords are associated?
Drunkard
Soliloquy
Intemperance
Ruin
Despair
Vice
Poem Details
Title
The Drunkard's Soliloquy
Subject
Drunkard's Lament On Intemperance
Key Lines
Who Am I! Aye, And What Am I, But A Wretched Outcast, Shunned And Despised By The Wise And Good.
My Estate Wasted: Constitution Destroyed; Affairs In Ruin: Friends Absconded: Children Naked And Hungry; Wife In Tears And Comfortless:
Cursed Temperance, These Are Thy Fruits!
Despair Seize Me—My Brain Is On Fire! Away, Thus, Let Me Haste: And Sink, Unremembered, Down, Down, Down To—"