This is an analysis of the poem Inflexible As Fate that begins with:

When for one brief dark hour Rome's virile sway
Felt the sharp shock of Cannae's adverse day,... full text

Elements of the verse: questions and answers

The information we provided is prepared by means of a special computer program. Use the criteria sheet to understand greatest poems or improve your poetry analysis essay.

  • Rhyme scheme: aabbccccdd eeccffccbb
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 10,10,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: heroic couplets
  • Metre: 11111101101 1011010011 1011110101 0101010101 1001010111 1001110101 1011011001 1101110101 1101011101 1101000111 1101111101 10110010001 0101010111 11011100101 1101010101 1011110001 1101010101 0101010011 0111010011 1001000101
  • Amount of stanzas: 2
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 444
  • Average number of words per stanza: 76
  • Amount of lines: 20
  • Average number of symbols per line: 43 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 8
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; in, nor are repeated.

If you write a school or university poetry essay, you should Include in your explanation of the poem:

  • summary of Inflexible As Fate;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Alfred Austin