This is an analysis of the poem The Last Leaf that begins with:

I saw him once before,
As he passed by the door,... 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: aabccb ddbccb eebccX ffdaad ccghhg bbijji bbaffa kklggl
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 6,6,6,6,6,6,6,6,
  • Closest metre: iambic trimeter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 111101 111101 101 010111 11101001 001 111001 1010101 111 1010111 1010101 101 111101 1111111 111 1110101 1011011 101100 010101 1011111 011 1011101 10111001 101 110011 1110101 101 1110101 1011101 001 110101 1010101 101 1010001 1010101 001 110001 110111 111 1011101 1010111 111 1011100 0110101 0001 1011111 1010101 111
  • Amount of stanzas: 8
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 160
  • Average number of words per stanza: 30
  • Amount of lines: 48
  • Average number of symbols per line: 26 (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.

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

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

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

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

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Oliver Wendell Holmes