Where's+the+beat?

Today in class we read "So We'll Go No More A-Roving." In the beginning of the poem the rhythm was perfect. It "flowed" well and there was a smooth feeling to it. The words of the poem could be heard clearly and it was very enjoyable. Then all of a sudden, "By the light of the moon." THERE IS A BEAT MISSING!!! It was driving me crazy when we were discussing this poem. I felt as though it needed to say, "By the light of the silvery moon." It just seemed like somethingw as missing... that there could be more. I asked about this in class yet I am still confused. It almost seems as if George Gordon was telling us that there is more to the story, and that's why he didn't add the beat. But the line above it states, "Yet we'll go no more a-roving," meaning that that's it. Does anyone know why this beat was taken out? 1205291572

Well I don't know why the beat is different, but I can give a few ideas. My first thought was just simply it was the end of the poem. When I read it, it didn't bother me that much. I think it forces readers to slow down in the middle of the line to kind of extend it. I also counted the syllables to see if this mattered at all. Each line has either 6, 7, or 8 syllables. But they aren't in a set pattern. For this reason, I think paying attention to the beats is indeed important. The entire poem flows nicely and sounds good because of the rhythmic beats. Maybe George Gordon just wanted to end it with a simple statement. Any other thoughts? 1205292704

I actually liked how it ended with that "missing" beat. When all the stanzas have the same number of beats and it continues to move steadily from stanza to stanza, there seems to be no end to it. When I read poetry wrtiten like this, I am always expecting it to go on forever- something always has to come next. By making the last line shorter than all the rest, it seems that Lord Byron is putting a definate end to the poem. There is no room or way for the poem to continue on - now that the rhythem has been broken there is no picking it up agian. 1205293224

I would never have noticed that the last line has fewer beats. To me it really didn't seem that out of place. It just seems like a good ending to the poem to wind it down. I don't think that there really needs to be a reason for the last line being shorter. It brings the poem to a close. I agree with MBe. The lack of a beat gives the poem a definite end. It is not left open ended for the readers. I also don't think that it was an accident or a flaw in the work, but I also don't believe that it has a deep meaning in the poem. Maybe it was just the way that the author wanted it to sound or end. I don't think that there has to be a complicated or drawn out reason.1205295151

I don’t think that the missing beat is all that important because not a whole lot of people noticed it. But what importance it does have is the role it plays as the end. It obviously caught the attention of Szd and puzzled her, maybe even annoyed her a little bit. That missing beat basically stopped her dead in her tracts because she stopped really reading the poem or trying to figure out what it all meant to try to figure out why there was a missing beat. That missing beat is enforcing the end of the poem. Szd, you actually stopped thinking about what the poem meant on the whole just like the roving ended. The missing beat provides a little jerk, a little double-take, that helps convey that the roving is ending. Just as the rhythmic flow of the poem is ended by the line, so is the roving that the poet so loved to do. 1205355040

I like the idea of the missing beat as a jerk in the beat to enforce the ending. The constant flow throughout the poem kept you reading and the missing beat at the end was an end to that constant flow we were listening to, it showed you that the constant flow was over, that the poem was finally over. However, the missing beat gives you a sort of yearning for more. When we don't have a firm ending or closure to something, people want it to become resolved so that they can be at peace with whatever it is. Perhaps the author ment to skip the beat in order the reader to want more. I know that when I read it I immediately picked up on the missing beat. I asked myself where the rest of it was. I expected it to start over again with the continuous flow and that the missing beat was just a break in the poem. Unfortunately, it wasn't and it was really the end of the poem. For the most part I think that the missing beat simply caught us all off guard. But I like it when writing keeps us on our toes. The flow of the poem had really gotten to me and the missing beat got me even more.1205458142

You also have to remember that the last line of the poem changes mood. In the last line the author is no longer happily love making and having a grand old time. At the end the light is coming up and he tells his lover that he can't do it anymore. They won't be having this affair any longer. It's over, and the missing beat serves that purpose. It is a direct statement to the reader and to the lover that that is it. The line is sad! The lack of beat perfectly portrays this mood. Read it again, and maybe you'll pick up on it. Or, read it again and tell me why I'm wrong. Or do neither, I suppose it doesn't matter. 1205463378

PMi brings up a good point about how the man tells his love he won't be having the affair any longer. The entire poem has a flow that is made up of their affair. The missing beat is an abruption to the affair they had been having. It could symbolize the ending of what they had. I'm not sure if you mean the actual line is sad, but the missing beat is what really makes the line sad. I really do think that this beat has a meaning to it. It just fits in with the rest of the story line. People may have missed out on the missing beat, but this is why we're told to read things over again. It is pretty usual that you will find something that you didn't see the first time. I know I heard the missing beat the first time, but it was the second time around that I started to wonder if it had meaning.1205467054

I also did not notice the missing beat but I also have come to realize the differences in poetry style and the fact that beat, rhythm, or rhyme are not always necessary in a poem. Gordon and Byron could've just but two beats in that last line, if it had fit the idea they were going for in the poem, and it sill would've been a "poem." I understand the frustration but it is done for a reason, and therefore fits the poem. This is just another example of how poets can do absolutely whatever they like with a poem because it is their work of art and they can extend their own opinions in whichever form they choose. 1205468366