This is an analysis of the poem Before We Were Married that begins with:

BLACKSOIL PLAINS were grey soil, grey soil in the drought.
Fifteen years away, and five hundred miles out;... 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: aabb ccdd ccee XXaa
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: heroic couplets
  • Metre: 10101111001 010011110101 11111010111 0110101111101 10101010001 101011100101 110010101110101 0110101110001 101010110111 101010001001 111111101101 0110101111011 0101010111101 1100101110 11001110111 011110111011
  • Amount of stanzas: 4
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 204
  • Average number of words per stanza: 39
  • Amount of lines: 16
  • Average number of symbols per line: 50 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 10
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; and is repeated.

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

  • summary of Before We Were Married;
  • 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 Lawson