This is an analysis of the poem O Dull Cold Northern Sky that begins with:

O DULL cold northern sky,
O brawling sabbath bells,... 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: abba bccb deed ecce fddfXbddb
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,9,
  • Closest metre: iambic trimeter
  • Сlosest rhyme: couplets
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 111101 110101 11010010111 010101 11111101 1101001 1110000101 110101 110111 011101 1101100010 111101 110101 010111 0101110111 110101 111101 110101 01010111001 110001 111101 010011 01110100001 01001
  • Amount of stanzas: 6
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 120
  • Average number of words per stanza: 22
  • Amount of lines: 24
  • Average number of symbols per line: 29 (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; o is repeated.

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

    The author used the same word o 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 O Dull Cold Northern Sky;
  • 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 Louis Stevenson