Jabberwocky

This is one of my favorite childhood poems - we had to memorize it in 5th grade. We studied the parts of speech of the words to understand what the poem was saying. Reminds me a little bit of a very not-for-childhood book - Clockwork Orange. That is a great but disturbing book. It is awesome to read because when you start it you don't understand it as it is almost another language but before long you pick it all up and know what is being said. Made-up language fascinates me - like Sindarin and Quenya and Vulcan and Klingon..... cool stuff!

So do you see in your mind when you see the slithy toves?

Jabberwocky!


Lewis Carroll


'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogroves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.


"Beware the Jabberock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"


He took his vorpal blade in hand;
Long time the manxome foe he sought-
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood a while in thought


And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!


One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.


"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh, Callay!"
He chortled in his joy.


'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogroves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.