This is an analysis of the poem The Old Man that begins with:

Days of darkness, of dreariness, have come…. Thy own infirmities, the
sufferings of those dear to thee, the chill and gloom of old age. All that...

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: XXaX XX XX XXXXa X
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,2,2,5,1,
  • Closest metre: trochaic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: no rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: sonnet with trochaic pentameter or irregular meter
  • Metre: 10100100111101000 10001101011101111 1110111101001000010 10010010111 1111101111110110 11 101110010111011010 10101 1111010100100011001 11100101001110101 11101101101001011 10101010111011100 001 1011110111
  • Amount of stanzas: 5
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 159
  • Average number of words per stanza: 29
  • Amount of lines: 14
  • Average number of symbols per line: 56 (very long strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 11
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

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

  • summary of The Old Man;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Ivan Turgenev