This is an analysis of the poem Playing With The Boys that begins with:

All the boring tedious young men
with dead eyes & dirty hair . . ....

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: aXbb XbXcac b XdbX ebXa fcgafe b afegXd
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,6,1,4,4,6,1,6,
  • Closest metre: iambic trimeter
  • Сlosest rhyme: limerick
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 101010011 011101 1011111110 1010101 111 11101 1100101 00110 1100111 10110 101010101 1111011 11110 110111 1110 1011101 11010 1010100 10001 110110101 010 1011 1011101 1011 0101011 111110101 110100011010 111111 0101 11011111110 111111 0111
  • Amount of stanzas: 8
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 107
  • Average number of words per stanza: 21
  • Amount of lines: 32
  • Average number of symbols per line: 26 (strings are less long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 5
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The speaker asks many questions. Perhaps, he or she is in confusion.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; all, i are repeated.

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

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

  • summary of Playing With The Boys;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Erica Jong