Ballade Of Good Whiskey Flashcards
“You whose ambition is to swim the Minch,
Or write a drum concerto in b flat.
Or run like Bannister or box like lynch,
Or find the ark wrecked on Mount Ararat.
No special trainings needed, thin or fat,
You’ll do it if you never once supplant.
On basis of your commisarriat,
Glenfiddich, Bruichladdich and Glengrant.
Mock, formal language.
List of ambitions to show high interests and ability to aim high
Second person, directed towards Chris.
Military metaphor - shows how serious Chris is.
Use of exaggeration throughout lends the verse a gently mocking tone
“My own desires are small, in fact,
I flinch, from heaving a heavenly Hindu from her ghat.
Or hauling Loch Ness Monsters, inch by inch,
Out of their wild and watery habitat.
I’ve no desire to be Jehoshaphat,
Or toy with houris fetched from the levant.
But give to me - bis dat qui cito dat -
Glenfiddich, Bruichladdich and Glengrant.
“My own desires” begins to create a contrast
Suggests he draws back from challenges.
Element of self mockery. Tone is emphasised by alliteration.
Avoids physical tasks, doesn’t believe in mythical characters.
Doesn’t want to lead a virtuous life or be a great leader.
List of tasks he rejects conveys his desire for simple needs.
“I would drink down, a think the feat a cinch,
The Congo, Volga, Amazon, La Platte.
And tweed as chaser- a bargain, this, to clinch,
In spite of nota bene and caveat
(Though what a feast must follow after that
Of Amplex, the devine deoderant!) -
If they ran - hear my heart go pit-a-pat!-
Glenfiddich, Bruichladdich and Glengrant
Boasts to exaggerate how good whiskey is
Lists vast, exotic rivers - suggests the power of whiskey
Parenthesis is used to break off and show excitement, child-like expression adds to feeling.
Parenthesis is also used to show the downside of whiskey.
Acknowledges warnings about drinking in excess
