The poem is written in five stanzas, including great examples of dialect and dialogue. To convey the sound of the boy’s words and the type of language he’s using, the poet chose to use misspellings of words like “ruther” and “fellers.” This helps readers imagine the exact sound of the boy’s voice and the excitement in his descriptions of his behavior.
Jest 'Fore Christmas Eugene FieldFather calls me William, sister calls me Will,Mother calls me Willie, but the fellers call me Bill!Mighty glad I ain't a girl - ruther be a boy,Without them sashes, curls, an' things that's worn by Fauntleroy!Love to chawnk green apples an' go swimmin' in the lake -Hate to take the castor-ile they give for belly-ache!'Most all the time, the whole year round, there ain't no flies on me,But jest 'fore Christmas I'm as good as I kin be!Got a yeller dog named Sport, sick him on the cat;First thing she knows she doesn't know where she is at!Got a clipper sled, an' when us kids goes out to slide,'Long comes the grocery cart an' we all hook a ride!But sometimes when the grocery man is worrited an' cross,He reaches at us with his whip, an' larrups up his hoss,An' then I laff an' holler, "Oh, ye never teched me!"But jest 'fore Christmas I'm as good as I kin be!Gran'ma says she hopes that when I git to be a man,I'll be a missionarer like her oldest brother, Dan,As was et up by the cannibuls that lives in Ceylon's Isle,Where every prospeck pleases, an' only man is vile!But gran'ma she has never been to see a Wild West show,Nor read the Life of Daniel Boone, or else I guess she'd knowThat Buff'lo Bill and cow-boys is good enough for me!Excep' jest 'fore Christmas, when I'm good as I kin be!And then old Sport he hangs around, so solemn-like an' still,His eyes they keep a-sayin': "What's the matter, little Bill?"The old cat sneaks down off her perch an' wonders what's becomeOf them two enemies of hern that used to make things hum!But I am so perlite an' 'tend so earnestly to biz,That mother says to father: "How improved our Willie is!"But father, havin' been a boy hisself, suspicions meWhen jest 'fore Christmas, I'm as good as I kin be!For Christmas, with its lots an' lots of candies, cakes an' toys,Was made, they say, for proper kids an' not for naughty boys;So wash yer face an' bresh yer hair, an' mind yer p's an' q's,An' don't bust out yer pantaloons, an' don't wear out yer shoes;Say "Yessum" to the ladies, an' "Yessur" to the men,An' when they's company, don't pass yer plate for pie again;But, thinking of the things yer'd like to see upon that tree,Jest 'fore Christmas be as good as yer kin be!
Summary
‘Jest ‘Fore Christmas’ by Eugene Field is an upbeat and humorous poem about a naughty child’s behavior.
The poem’s five stanzas focus on how the young boy usually behaves, sicking a dog on a cat, making messes, and getting into trouble, as well as how he behaves in the days leading up to Christmas. He stops getting into trouble and is so good that his parents can’t help but comment on how sweet and kind he’s being. This inspires them, he knows, to give him more Christmas presents.
Structure and Form
‘Jest ‘Fore Christmas’ by Eugene Field is a five-stanza poem divided into sets of eight lines, known as octaves. One of the first things readers are likely to notice about this poem is the use of a refrain at the end of each stanza. All five stanzas end with a variation: “But jest ‘fore Christmas I’m as good as I kin be!” This, along with the poet’s use of dialect, are the two most immediate elements of the poem that should be addressed.
From the first few lines, readers will note the use of words like “fellers” instead of “fellows” and “ain’t” instead of “I’m not.’ There are many other examples that only rarely increase the poem’s complexity. As with all passages of dialect, it’s very helpful to read the lines of this poem out loud if anything looks confusing.
Literary Devices
In this poem, the poet uses a few literary devices. These include:
- Refrain: the repetition of an entire line of verse. For example, the poet uses a refrain at the end of each stanza.
- Dialect: the use of place-specific language that’s often described as slang. For example, it is using the word “ruther” instead of “rather” to convey the sound of one’s pronunciation.
- Dialogue: in this poem, the poet included sections of dialogue. For example, ‘An’ then I laff an’ holler, “Oh, ye never teched me!”‘
Detailed Analysis
Stanza One
Father calls me William, sister calls me Will,
Mother calls me Willie, but the fellers call me Bill!
Mighty glad I ain’t a girl – ruther be a boy,
Without them sashes, curls, an’ things that’s worn by Fauntleroy!
Love to chawnk green apples an’ go swimmin’ in the lake –
Hate to take the castor-ile they give for belly-ache!
‘Most all the time, the whole year round, there ain’t no flies on me,
But jest ‘fore Christmas I’m as good as I kin be!
In the first stanza of this Eugene Field poem, the speaker, a young child, refers to himself by the names that his family uses to call him. He’s called William, Will, Willie, and Bill, depending on who is talking to him. He excitedly adds to this that he’s glad he’s a boy and not a girl. He’d rather not have to worry about sashes and curls as girls do. He’d much rather get to enjoy swimming in the lake and doing things boys are often seen doing.
He adds in a few more facts about himself, saying that he hates taking “castor-ile” when he’s sick and that “there ain’t no flies on me” throughout most of the year. Finally, he ends the stanza by saying that it’s always right before Christmas that he’s on his best behavior, hoping to get as many presents out of his parents as possible.
The childish tone of these lines is continued into the next four stanzas. It’s both entertaining and humorous.
Stanza Two
Got a yeller dog named Sport, sick him on the cat;
First thing she knows she doesn’t know where she is at!
Got a clipper sled, an’ when us kids goes out to slide,
‘Long comes the grocery cart an’ we all hook a ride!
But sometimes when the grocery man is worrited an’ cross,
He reaches at us with his whip, an’ larrups up his hoss,
An’ then I laff an’ holler, “Oh, ye never teched me!”
But jest ‘fore Christmas I’m as good as I kin be!
In the second stanza, the speaker describes the normal, mischievous things that he gets into throughout the year. He plays games with his friends to irk the grocery man, sicks the dog on the cat, and more. He finds a great deal of joy in this kind of behavior but knows that he has to cut out right before Christmas if he wants to get any presents.
Stanza Three
Gran’ma says she hopes that when I git to be a man,
I’ll be a missionarer like her oldest brother, Dan,
As was et up by the cannibuls that lives in Ceylon’s Isle,
Where every prospeck pleases, an’ only man is vile!
But gran’ma she has never been to see a Wild West show,
Nor read the Life of Daniel Boone, or else I guess she’d know
That Buff’lo Bill and cow-boys is good enough for me!
Excep’ jest ‘fore Christmas, when I’m good as I kin be!
In the third stanza, the speaker adds more details about his life. He tells readers that his grandmother wants him to be a missionary when he grows up, like his brother Dan. But the speaker has different plans. He’s read wild west stories and seen the shows and knows that being a cowboy is the type of life that would suit him. He’d love the adventure and the danger. But this isn’t something he rubs in her face right before Christmas. He’s always on his best behavior, then.
Stanza Four
And then old Sport he hangs around, so solemn-like an’ still,
His eyes they keep a-sayin’: “What’s the matter, little Bill?”
The old cat sneaks down off her perch an’ wonders what’s become
Of them two enemies of hern that used to make things hum!
But I am so perlite an’ ‘tend so earnestly to biz,
That mother says to father: “How improved our Willie is!”
But father, havin’ been a boy hisself, suspicions me
When jest ‘fore Christmas, I’m as good as I kin be!
Just before Christmas, his parents can’t help but common on how “improved our Willie is.” He’s behaving like a totally different child and is convincing them, in exactly the way he hoped, that he deserves as many Christmas presents as they can afford. Seemingly, his parents have not caught onto why his behavior changes so dramatically at this time of year.
Stanza Five
For Christmas, with its lots an’ lots of candies, cakes an’ toys,
Was made, they say, for proper kids an’ not for naughty boys;
So wash yer face an’ bresh yer hair, an’ mind yer p’s an’ q’s,
An’ don’t bust out yer pantaloons, an’ don’t wear out yer shoes;
Say “Yessum” to the ladies, an’ “Yessur” to the men,
An’ when they’s company, don’t pass yer plate for pie again;
But, thinking of the things yer’d like to see upon that tree,
Jest ‘fore Christmas be as good as yer kin be!
The speaker knows that Christmas was for “proper kids” not “naughty boys” like him. This is why he’s so aware of the fact that his behavior may result in him having a very disappointing Christmas. He minds his “p’s and q’s” brushes his hair, and does everything that his parents expect of him.
He says “Yessum,” slang for “Yes mam'” and “yessur,” slang for “Yes sir.” He might not like behaving in this way, but he’s inspired to continue doing so when he thinks about the. Many different things that he’d like to see under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning.
FAQs
The main theme of the poem is youth and the way that young children will alter their behavior in order to get what they want. In this case, a mischievous young boy behaves in the days leading up to Christmas in order to ensure he gets as many presents as possible.
The tone is mischievous and confident. The speaker is a young boy who, throughout much of the year, continually misbehaves. But, he also has a tried and true scheme he employs every Christmas, ensuring that he behaves in the weeks leading up to it and gets many presents.
‘Jest ‘Fore Christmas’ is a humorous, five-stanza poem that’s written from the perspective of a young boy. It is meant to entertain readers and likely was aimed at children as a funny, Christmas-time poem to read.
Similar Poetry
Readers who enjoyed this poem should also consider reading some other Eugene Field poems. For example:
- ‘Little Boy Blue‘ – is a beautiful, heartbreaking poem that describes the aftermath of a child’s death.
- ‘The Duel‘ – tells the oddly amusing tale of the gingham dog and the calico cat.
- ‘The Sugar-Plum Tree‘ – is an image-rich poem that describes a colorful and entertaining dream world.
