This is an analysis of the poem The City Of Sleep that begins with:

Over the edge of the purple down,
Where the single lamplight gleams,... 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: AbabcdeeCD afafXdeECD AaaaXdeEcD
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 10,10,10,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: shakespearean sonnet
  • Сlosest stanza type: sonnet
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 100100101 1010101 1101001001 10110101 101111101 10110101 111011101 11001101 111100101 1001001 101100111 101111 1111001001 1011101 001100101 101101 111011101 11001101 111100101 1001001 100100101 1010101 1111101001 1111100 11100101 101111 11011101 11001101 111100101 1001001
  • Amount of stanzas: 3
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 327
  • Average number of words per stanza: 65
  • Amount of lines: 30
  • Average number of symbols per line: 32 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 7
  • 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; pity, us, and, we are repeated.

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

    There is a poetic device epiphora at the end of some neighboring lines us is repeated).

    The poet repeated the same word sleep at the end of some neighboring stanzas. The poetic device is a kind of epiphora.

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

  • summary of The City Of Sleep;
  • 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