This is an analysis of the poem When We Play The Fool that begins with:

Last night I stood in a tawdry place
And watched the ways of the human race....

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: aaXXbbcc ddeecccc eeffcccc gghhggcX
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,8,8,8,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: heroic couplets
  • Metre: 111100101 110100101 1110100101 110101111 110100101 1011011001 1100111101 111100111 1100100101 110101111 000101111 11100101 11000101100 1110100111 11101111 100100101 111100111 1101110111 110101101 111110101 111101111 110100101 101100111 1100110101 1111111101 110010111 1101101101 0010111111 1100110111 1110110111 1110110101 0110011001
  • Amount of stanzas: 4
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 316
  • Average number of words per stanza: 65
  • Amount of lines: 32
  • Average number of symbols per line: 39 (medium-length strings)
  • 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; and, we are repeated.

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same word and is repeated.

    The literary device anadiplosis is detected in two or more neighboring lines. The word/phrase i connects the lines.

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

  • summary of When We Play The Fool;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Edgar Albert Guest