From: "Matthew Francis" <[log in to unmask]>
> >Drunk driver heed this, were you not blind,
>
> needs an extra syllable to make it flow smoothly, eg:
>
> >Drunk driver heed this, were you not so blind,
I prefer the original line here. OK, it is one syllable short, but the
strong medial pause after "heed this" makes up for it. The rhythmic effect
Josephine achieves here would be lost with Matthew's change (which,
admittedly, makes the line run smoother). Also, the emphasis would switch
in the second half of the line from "you" to "were".
Consider the line from Wyatt's "They flee from me ..." where there's a
similar effect:
'It was no dream. I lay broad waking ...
Robin
