This is an analysis of the poem The Onward Course that begins with:

Our course is onward, onward into light:
What though the darkness gathereth amain, ...

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: aXbaabba cXdcXd
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,6,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: limerick
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: sonnet with iambic pentameter or irregular meter
  • Metre: 1101010001 1101010010 1001110111 1101011011 10011101101 0101111101 0101001101 1001010101 1011010101 1111000111 1101100101 11010101111 0101011101 11001011101
  • Amount of stanzas: 2
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 303
  • Average number of words per stanza: 54
  • Amount of lines: 14
  • Average number of symbols per line: 42 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 8
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

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

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

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Richard Chenevix Trench