This is an analysis of the poem Psalm 139 that begins with:

O Lord in me there lieth nought
But to thy search revealed lies;... 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: Xabbaba cdeedcd efccfef ggeeggX haggaha bgiigbg
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 7,7,7,7,7,7,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 1101111 1011011 1111 1100 11110111 11010011 11010011 11001111 10111111 1111 1101 11010111 11111101 111000111 01111101 01111101 1111 1111 11111111 11110101 11010101 01110111 11011111 0101 1101 01110001 10111101 01011110 11111111 01110101 1101 1111 11110101 101011111 11110101 11111101 01010101 1101 1101 01011110 11011101 11001101
  • Amount of stanzas: 6
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 206
  • Average number of words per stanza: 41
  • Amount of lines: 42
  • Average number of symbols per line: 29 (strings are less long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 6
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; thou, i, thy, there are repeated.

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

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

  • summary of Psalm 139;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Sir Philip Sidney