This is an analysis of the poem The Home-Going that begins with:

We must get home--for we have been away
So long it seems forever and a day!... 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: aabbbB ccddbB cceebB XXffbB cXbbbB
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 6,6,6,6,6,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: heroic couplets
  • Metre: 1111111001 1101010101 1111011111 0100010101 01101010111 1111111101 1111011101 1111011111 1101110111 1111011101 1111010111 1111111101 1111101101 0101011111 1101011011 0110010101 0101010101 1111111101 1111111111 1101110101 1111110101 0111110111 1111111101 1111111101 11111100001 1101010100 100100100101 0101110111 10101111001 1111111101
  • Amount of stanzas: 5
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 266
  • Average number of words per stanza: 52
  • Amount of lines: 30
  • Average number of symbols per line: 43 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 9
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; we, must, get, home, our are repeated.

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

    The author used the same word we at the beginnings of some neighboring stanzas. The figure of speech is a kind of anaphora.

    The poet repeated the same word again at the end of some neighboring stanzas. The poetic device is a kind of epiphora.

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

  • summary of The Home-Going;
  • 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 Whitcomb Riley