This is an analysis of the poem A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning that begins with:

As virtuous men pass mildly away,
And whisper to their souls, to go,... 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: abaX cdcd cece dede fcfX gege bbbb ehehXegeg
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,4,4,4,9,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 1100111001 11001101 11011111 11111111 11111111 11111101 11010011 01010011 100111111 11010011 11010001 11010100 11000101 11011001 10010101 11110000 111011101 10111100 0101001 11111101 11111111 11110111 0111010 11010101 01011111 11110011 11011111 011101101 11000101 11010111 01110100 11011111 11100111 111010101 11011101 11111110
  • Amount of stanzas: 9
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 146
  • Average number of words per stanza: 27
  • Amount of lines: 36
  • Average number of symbols per line: 36 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 7
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

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

  • summary of A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by John Donne