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

LONG I followed happy guides,
I could never reach their sides;... 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: aabbccXaddddeeeXadadddffXXgghhddaaiiaa
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 38,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: shakespearean sonnet
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1110101 1110111 11011101 11110101 1111111 1001101 1110110 01011101 11011101 1010111 10111101 11010100 110101001 11110111 11011111 1011101 1110100 1011101 11111100 1110111 1111101 0010101 1010001 1011101 1111101 10111100 01111110 11111010 011100101 11010101 0100111 110110111 1111101 1110111 110001110 10111110 11001111 1110101
  • Amount of stanzas: 1
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 1257
  • Average number of words per stanza: 225
  • Amount of lines: 38
  • 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; their, my, they are repeated.

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

  • summary of Forerunners;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Ralph Waldo Emerson