This is an analysis of the poem The Ballad Of The Landlord that begins with:

Landlord, landlord,
My roof has sprung a leak....

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: Abcb AdXd eeee Xcac Xeae fdca ggcdgfagg
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,4,4,9,
  • Closest metre: iambic trimeter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1111 111101 1110111010 111 1111 110101 111110 00101111 1111111 111101 111110111 1110111 1110101010 1101111 110111001 10001 111101110 111111 11100100101 0111111 0101 11101 1100100100 110101 1010 011 01 1110 101 1101 11011 1011 11010110101
  • Amount of stanzas: 7
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 122
  • Average number of words per stanza: 23
  • Amount of lines: 33
  • Average number of symbols per line: 25 (strings are less long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 5
  • Mood of the speaker:

    There are many exclamation marks in the poem. The speaker is excited. He or she has strong feelings on the subject that is described in the poem.

    The speaker asks many questions. Perhaps, he or she is in confusion.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; you, ten, bucks, gonna are repeated.

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

    The author used the same word landlord 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 Ballad Of The Landlord;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Langston Hughes