This is an analysis of the poem The Great Mercy that begins with:

Betwixt the saddle and the ground
Was mercy sought and mercy found....

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: Aa bb cc dd ee ff ee gg XfXAa
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,5,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 01010101 11011101 100100011 11111101 01010101 11110001 11011101 1111110101 111011101 100101001 11111111 111111101 111010111 010011111 11111111 10110101 10010111 11010101 01010101 11011101
  • Amount of stanzas: 10
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 74
  • Average number of words per stanza: 14
  • Amount of lines: 20
  • Average number of symbols per line: 37 (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, thou are repeated.

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

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

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

  • summary of The Great Mercy;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Katharine Tynan