This is an analysis of the poem Lines From A Letter To A Young Clerical Friend that begins with:

A STRENGTH Thy service cannot tire,
A faith which doubt can never dim,... 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: ababcdcdefefcgcghihidfdfdfdf
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 28,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: shakespearean sonnet
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 011101010 01111101 010101010 11010101 111101011 11110101 11010101 11111101 11011101 11011101 11110111 001010101 11111101 110101001 01010111 01000101 01011101 01111101 11110101 010010101 11011111 00110001 11010101 010101001 11110111 11011101 11011101 11110101
  • Amount of stanzas: 1
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 1000
  • Average number of words per stanza: 190
  • Amount of lines: 28
  • Average number of symbols per line: 35 (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; and is repeated.

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

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

  • summary of Lines From A Letter To A Young Clerical Friend;
  • 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 Greenleaf Whittier