This is an analysis of the poem Waltzing Matilda that begins with:

OH! there once was a swagman camped in the Billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolabah tree; ... 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: XabA bAcAdacA XacA daXA X
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,8,4,4,1,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: heroic couplets
  • Metre: 1111010100100 1001001001 1111111011010 1101001001 11010010110 1101001001 100101100101 1101001001 110100110101 1101011101 11111110100101 1101001001 110100100101 110101111 100101100101 1101001001 10101111100101 1001101001 10110110100100 1101001001 101011100
  • Amount of stanzas: 5
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 198
  • Average number of words per stanza: 37
  • Amount of lines: 22
  • Average number of symbols per line: 44 (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; waltzing, matilda, who, ll, come are repeated.

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same words who, down are repeated.

    The poet repeated the same word me at the end of some neighboring stanzas. The poetic device is a kind of epiphora.

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

  • summary of Waltzing Matilda;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Banjo Paterson