This is an analysis of the poem Lines Written By The Side Of A River that begins with:

FLOW soft RIVER, gently stray,
Still a silent waving tide ... 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: abbXccbbaaadeeeXfggf abbXbbeccehhiiggjjadbbkkaallaa aaggaX
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 20,30,6,
  • Closest metre: trochaic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: limerick
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1110101 1010101 10110101 1111100 1110011 1010101 1110101 10011101 1010101 1010101 1010110 1010100 1010111 1010111 1110101 1110110 1010101 1011101 10101001 1110101 1010101 1110101 10101001 1111100 101001001 1110101 1110101 11010111 1010101 1010101 1110101 1010101 1010011 1010101 1011101 1011101 0110111 1000101 1010110 1010100 1010101 01110001 11110111 11010101 1010101 0110101 1010101 1011101 1000101 1110101 10010101 1010101 1010101 1011101 1011111 11110100
  • Amount of stanzas: 3
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 594
  • Average number of words per stanza: 99
  • Amount of lines: 57
  • Average number of symbols per line: 30 (strings are less long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 5
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

  • summary of Lines Written By The Side Of A River;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Mary Darby Robinson