A Poem vs a Modern Song

"The best way out is always through."

A Poem vs a Modern Song

Canis Major Who Let The Dogs Out
By: Robert Frost vs By: Baha Men

Canis Major
by: Robert Frost

The great Overdog
That heavenly beast
With a star in one eye
Gives a leap in the east.

He dances upright
All the way to the west
And never once drops
On his forefeet to rest.

I'm a poor underdog,
But to-night I will bark
With the great Overdog
That romps through the dark.

Who Let The Dogs Out

Who let the dogs out
{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}

Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}

{woof, woof, woof, woof}

When the party was nice, the party was jumpin' {Hey, Yippie, Yi, Yo}
And everybody havin' a ball {Hah, ho, Yippie Yi Yo}
I tell the fellas "…start the name callin'…" {Yippie Yi Yo}
And the girls report to the call
The poor dog show down

Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}

I see ya' little speed boat head up our coast
She really want to skip town
Get back off me, beast off me
Get back you flea infested monger

{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}
{woof, woof, woof, woof}

I'm gonna tell {Hey, Yippie, Yi, Yo}
To any girls calling them canine {Yippie, Yi, Yo}
Tell the dummy "Hey Man, It's part of the Party!" {Yippie Yi, Yo}
You fetch a women in front and her mans behind {Yippie, Yi, Yo}
Her bone runs out now

Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}

Say,
A doggy is nuttin' if he don't have a bone
All dogy hold ya' bone, all doggy hold it
A doggy is nuttin' if he don't have a bone
All dogy hold ya' bone, all doggy hold it

Wait for y'all my dogs, the party is on
I gotta get my girl I got my myind on
Do you see the rays comin' from my eye
What could you be friend
that Benji man that's breakin' them down?
Me and My white short shorts
And I can't seek a lot, any canine will do
I'm figurin' that's why they call me faithful
'Cause I'm the man of the land
When they see me they do…ah-ooooo(howl)

Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}
Who let the dogs out {woof, woof, woof, woof}

The poem “Canis Major” written by Robert Frost is very similar to the Baha Men’s song “Who let the dogs out “because both the song and poem are about dogs. Robert Frost’s poem is a reference to the fight that an underdog has to go through to earn respect and status in this harsh world. The underdog must conform to the ways of the “Great Overdog” in order to make a name for himself. The song “Who let the dogs out” addresses this as well because the lyrics of the song project an understanding that if you don’t have a “bone” than your just a mongrel dog who isn’t worth anything. The “Bone” can be seen as the status and power the underdog in Robert Frost’s poem is trying to achieve by acting like the Overdog.

The poem and song are very different however for various reasons. The poem is projecting the need for the underdog to gain status simply for himself, where as the song is projecting a need for the underdog to gain status or a “Bone” so he can get with the girls at the party. Both the poem and the song rely heavily on personification of the characters within their respective stories to help the audience connect and relate with what is going on as the story and lyrics of the song progress.