This is an analysis of the poem The Ballad Of A Bachelor that begins with:

Listen, ladies, while I sing
The ballad of John Henry King.... 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: aA bc dd aa ee dd ff gg gg cc cc ff dd cc fX hh ff cc fX ee cc hh gg dd cb aA X
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,1,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1010111 01001101 11010100 01110111 11100101 110100001 11001101 10111101 11010111 01011111 11110001 11110001 11110111 11010101 01110111 01011101 11111101 11111111 11001101 11110101 11110101 11110101 01010101 01000101 01011101 10011001 111010001 01011101 01111101 011111110 10010101 01011111 11111101 01011111 10010111 11010001 11001110100 010101110 01010101 11010101 11110111 01010101 11010101 01110101 11010001 01010111 11010001 11010101 11010111 11110100 11011111 01001101 0101110
  • Amount of stanzas: 27
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 66
  • Average number of words per stanza: 13
  • Amount of lines: 54
  • Average number of symbols per line: 33 (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, he, and are repeated.

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same words and, he, if are repeated.

    The author used the same word and 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 The Ballad Of A Bachelor;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Ellis Parker Butler