[BotRH] Jak O' the Shadows

Corki · March 18, 2006

It is back!!! The Jak O' the Shadows thread is back in business at the Band of the Red Hand!!!

Feel free to post your verses! Band members will get points for their verses (1 point per verse), but non-Band members are free to post their attempts!

Below I include an article from our successful newsletter, The Hornsounder, in which Mushuganna explains how one goes about writing some Jak O' the Shadow verses.

An Analysis of Jak O' the Shadows

By Mushuganna, Lieutenant-Captain of the Infantry

One might think that writing a verse of the famed Jak o' the Shadows would be easy. Just think of a few words that rhyme, put them together, and there you go. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Finally, after hundreds of verses (most of them really good) have been written by our own Band members, the true art of writing a JOS verse is being revealed.

First, one must look at the original Jak O' the Shadows verses written by Robert Jordan himself, in Lord of Chaos. As sung by the Band of the Red Hand, one of the verses goes as follows:

"We'll drink the wine till the cup is dry,

And kiss the girls so they'll not cry,

And toss the dice until we fly

To dance with Jak o' the Shadows."

Now, you can see, the first three lines have 8 syllables each (except the first, but the "the" after "till" is not meant to be accented, so it counts as 8 anyways). Also, they rhyme. So it looks like the verse follows the form "A, A, A, B", with the first three lines having 8 syllables each, and the last line ending in "Jak O' the Shadows". Now let us look at another verse:

"We'll dance all night while the moon runs free,

And dandle the lasses upon our knee,

And then you'll ride along with me,

To dance with Jak o' the Shadows."

Now, the syllabic interpretation gets a little confusing. The first line has 9 syllables, and the second 10, and the third 8. But, when put into a Iambic rhythm, it makes perfect sense:

"We'll dance all night while the moon runs free

And dandle the lasses upon our knee" etc.

So, the Jak O' the Shadows verses are written in "A, A, A, B" form, with the first three lines being in Iambic Tetrameter (four sets of alternating unstressed then stressed syllables), and the last line being "To _____ with Jak O' the Shadows" (the blank being an accented word). This last line can be changed according to the circumstances, as long as it fits into the meter.

Basically, if you can sing it, (easily), then you're ok.

And there you go! How to go about a Jak O' the Shadow verse! Get thinking, and get writing! ;)

Steel Axe · March 18, 2006

Posting on the new DM day and night

finally found a forum that feels right

going to the tavern to test my might

Fighting with the Jak O' the Shadows

People have said I like to spam

personally I prefer eating ham

or maybe a piece of toast with jam

Posting with the Jak O' the Shadows

Spacey · March 19, 2006

There once was a lad called Goldeneys

Who looked all around with conspiring eyes

Talked of the Power with little despise

While dancing with Jak Oâ€™ the Shadows

Woven in a ball so brightly

The words left his mouth so lightly

And broke the law more than slightly