This is an analysis of the poem To The Enemy Complaining that begins with:

Be ruthless, then; scorn slaves of scruple; avow
The blow, planned with such patience, that you deal... 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: abab cbcb dbdbXcc
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,7,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: Shakespearean sonnet
  • Metre: 01011101001 0110110111 1100111111 01001111101 1111111101 0100100111 11110111001 1111010010 1111110101 0101000100 0100110111 1101110001 1011010101 0101011111
  • Amount of stanzas: 4
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 155
  • Average number of words per stanza: 29
  • Amount of lines: 14
  • Average number of symbols per line: 43 (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; you, of are repeated.

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

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

  • summary of To The Enemy Complaining;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Robert Laurence Binyon