Gaffes by Lawrence S. Pertillar: poem analysis

This is an analysis of the poem Gaffes that begins with:

Why are you laughing?
'It appears that the ventriloquist and the puppet, ...

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: a bX bbXcdd XeXX XbXec ac XX eX XXX X
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 1,2,6,4,5,2,2,2,3,1,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: no rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 11110 1011010001010 1100010011101 111010101 1011101 0010100010 1 110001001 1101001 1 0110101001 111011111001 10110100100100 100 1000101 010001010001 01000001101010 010100111010 1110 01001111 11 1101010101 1110 11101111110 1 11010100101 10111000 1001111101
  • Amount of stanzas: 10
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 93
  • Average number of words per stanza: 16
  • Amount of lines: 28
  • Average number of symbols per line: 33 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 6

  • Mood of the speaker:

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

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

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same word the is repeated.

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

  • summary of Gaffes;
  • 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

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