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

OLD BILLY—battered, brown and black
With many days of camping,... 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: ababcbcbdbdbefef dgdghbhb ididXjXj
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 16,8,8,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 11010111 0101010 01000101 1101110 11010111 1101010 01111111 0111010 11000111 1111010 10010101 0101110 11010111 0101010 11010101 1111010 11110101 0101110 11110101 0101010 11000111 0110010 01010101 0101010 11110111 1111110 10010101 0111110 11010101 1110010 11110110 1111110
  • Amount of stanzas: 3
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 350
  • Average number of words per stanza: 63
  • Amount of lines: 32
  • Average number of symbols per line: 32 (medium-length strings)
  • 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; of, you are repeated.

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same words of, although are repeated.

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

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

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by James Lister Cuthbertson