This is an analysis of the poem A Story that begins with:

He loved her and he was untrue—
Untrue he was, let loved her still; ... 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: abab cccc dede fgfg adXd haha
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,4,4,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 11011101 01111101 11010101 011101000 11011101 01110101 11010001 11010111 11110111 10011111 01010111 01010101 11111101 11111101 11110101 10011111 11110111 10111111 11101101 11110111 11111111 11011111 11110011 10111001
  • Amount of stanzas: 6
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 147
  • Average number of words per stanza: 28
  • Amount of lines: 24
  • Average number of symbols per line: 36 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 7
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

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

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

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

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

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Harriet Monroe