This is an analysis of the poem 'Dreads' that begins with:

It's not a statement of defiance,
I wear my hair in dreads....

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: ABCCdE edadaXf e begeXhbXe gee ABCCdEX XhXhah fhXXheXhe hbXcXX
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 6,7,1,9,3,7,6,9,6,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: no rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 010100010 111101 0111 101010 1000 111 1101111110 010000100 0100010010 101010010100 01000111011 101011 010010101 1011011101 011010101 0111111 111101101010 111010100101 11010 1111 01 10001 1101000111 1100100 001001 10110101 010100010 111101 0111 101010 1000 111 100 11111 11011001 1111011101000 1011010 111111 0010101 11111011111 001011111 10010111 010001010011 1111111011 01 0100111111 1101101 1011111 1 1000011010 110100010111 1011001001 010001001011 100010
  • Amount of stanzas: 9
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 179
  • Average number of words per stanza: 32
  • Amount of lines: 54
  • Average number of symbols per line: 29 (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.

    There are many three dots in the poem. Readers should think of the author's idea together with the pensive speaker.

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

    The author used the same word and 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 'Dreads';
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Lawrence S. Pertillar