This is an analysis of the poem Prayer's Before Sleep that begins with:

Straight A's on arithmetic quizzes, your cheek gets ground
into the concrete down here, Sir. Thank You...

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: XX Xa Xb cX Xa XX bc ab dd
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,
  • Closest metre: trochaic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: no rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1111010101111 0001011111 1101011010011 1110101111010 101101011011110 1110011001101010 1110100010110 11011111110101 11011011111 111010011011 01001011110 111101001011 10100010001111 011110010110 1110110101101 1011011111101110 010101101100010 100110111111010
  • Amount of stanzas: 9
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 109
  • Average number of words per stanza: 20
  • Amount of lines: 18
  • Average number of symbols per line: 54 (very long strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 10
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; your, my, and are repeated.

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

  • summary of Prayer's Before Sleep;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Chris Forhan