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

Lately alas I knew a gentle boy,
Whose features all were cast in Virtue's mould, ... 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: ababacXc dede fbab ghgh ddhd ijij hkhk jcjc lclc fhah mXXjXhmhm
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,4,4,4,4,4,4,4,4,4,9,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: blank verse
  • Metre: 1001110101 1101010101 1111011101 1101110111 11001110111 1111110101 1111110110 1010010011 111110100 0111110101 0101011100 01010100011 1111011100 1111100101 1111110101 1101001101 11010101010 1101111001 11010101010 1100010101 1111010110 1101110001 1111011100 1111111111 1101110101 0101011101 1111011101 1101011111 1101110101 1111010101 1110011111 0101010001 0100110101 1111110101 0101011101 1111010001 0111110011 1100110011 1101001111 1001001101 1111011100 0101111111 1001001101 1101100101 1111010001 1010011111 0101110101 1011011101 0111110110 1001000101 1110100100 1101010011
  • Amount of stanzas: 12
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 181
  • Average number of words per stanza: 34
  • Amount of lines: 52
  • Average number of symbols per line: 41 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 8
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

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

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

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

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Henry David Thoreau