This is an analysis of the poem Atherton's Gambit that begins with:

The Master played the bishop’s pawn,
For jest, while Atherton looked on; ... 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: aabXcccc ddeeffee aabXgghh iiggeeii XXffiXaa
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,8,8,8,8,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 01010101 11110011 01010111 11000110 11110101 10010111 11010011 01001111 01010101 11010101 11110111 01110101 11011101 11000101 01010101 11010101 10010101 11111111 10010111 110010110 1101010 11110001 01110101 01000001 01011101 01010101 10011101 11011111 01011101 01010101 10110101 00110111 10110110 11110100 11011101 11011101 11001101 0011010 10010101 01010100
  • Amount of stanzas: 5
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 265
  • Average number of words per stanza: 51
  • Amount of lines: 40
  • Average number of symbols per line: 32 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 6
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; to is repeated.

    The author used the same word the at the beginnings of some neighboring stanzas. The figure of speech is a kind of anaphora.

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

  • summary of Atherton's Gambit;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Edwin Arlington Robinson