This is an analysis of the poem To A Blank Sheet Of Paper that begins with:

WAN-VISAGED thing! thy virgin leaf
To me looks more than deadly pale,... 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: Xaba cdcd efff ghih bcXc Xjaj Xjgj XfXf eiXi fkXkXbaba
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,4,4,4,4,4,9,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 110011101 01111101 01011111 010101 11111101 11110111 11010101 110101 11111101 11010101 11111101 100101 110110101 11011101 11011101 010111 01010001 11010111 11011101 110011 001001010 11010111 11011101 111101 10010111 11110101 11111101 110101 01011101 01110101 01011101 010101 11111111 11011101 11111111 111101 110010001 010010101 011101010 0101001 11010011 01110101 11110001 1111001
  • Amount of stanzas: 11
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 131
  • Average number of words per stanza: 25
  • Amount of lines: 44
  • Average number of symbols per line: 32 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 6
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; thou is repeated.

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

    The author used the same word thou 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 To A Blank Sheet Of Paper;
  • 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