This is an analysis of the poem Lydia that begins with:

There was life before us
my sister and I discovered...

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: a Xa bc de ca cf XbXd bc ba Xe eb Xe fX aXeXXca
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 1,2,2,2,2,2,4,2,2,2,2,2,2,7,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 111011 11011010 101101 11010101 00101110 10101001 110101011 01001110 0011111 01010010 101010 0100110101 11001 0001101 11100111 111011 0111010 100101100 01011011 1101001 1110100 1101110 011010011 01101010 1011111110 0011010 0110110111 11101101 10110101 10100111 00111010 101110 11101
  • Amount of stanzas: 15
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 65
  • Average number of words per stanza: 12
  • Amount of lines: 33
  • Average number of symbols per line: 29 (strings are less long than medium ones)
  • 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; in, of are repeated.

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

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

  • summary of Lydia;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Geraldine Connolly