This is an analysis of the poem The Treasure Of The Wise Man that begins with:

O the night was dark and the night was late,
And the robbers came to rob him;... 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: abaBaaaB cbcBcccB
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,8,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: limerick
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: blank verse
  • Metre: 1011110111 10101011 1110100101 01011011 110100101 10101101 0100110101 01011011 111100101 101101011 110111101 10101011 111100101 0010100111 11100111011 10101011
  • Amount of stanzas: 2
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 322
  • Average number of words per stanza: 64
  • Amount of lines: 16
  • Average number of symbols per line: 39 (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; and, his, of are repeated.

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

    The poet repeated the same word him 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 Treasure Of The Wise 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 James Whitcomb Riley