This is an analysis of the poem Gentlemen-Rankers that begins with:

To the legion of the lost ones, to the cohort of the damned,
To my brethren in their sorrow overseas,... 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: ababbacaDXDXDEDF XghgiXeX ijijbckc lklkhahaDXDXDEDF
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 16,8,8,16,
  • Closest metre: iambic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: blank verse
  • Metre: 001000110010001 01100110101 1010001010110001 10100010011 1010001011101110 1111011101 10111111110101 10101010111 111010111 111 110110101 111 100101101 10100100 11101111 111 101011101010101 10101010101 010101001010101 1101111111 1011101001000011 1100010101 1110111011101010 111110111100 001110101011101 1111110111 01010101010111 11110110101 1010111010111010 10100110101 10010101010101110 11101110101 111011101110111 11101010111 101001010010011 1111110111 110101010111010 1100011101 10101011111001101 11111110111 111010111 111 110110101 111 100101101 10100100 11101111 111
  • Amount of stanzas: 4
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 581
  • Average number of words per stanza: 105
  • Amount of lines: 48
  • Average number of symbols per line: 48 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 9
  • Mood of the speaker:

    There are many exclamation marks in the poem. The speaker is excited. He or she has strong feelings on the subject that is described in the poem.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; of, to, and, baa, sweet, you, we are repeated.

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

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

  • summary of Gentlemen-Rankers;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Rudyard Kipling