This is an analysis of the poem Old Folks At Home that begins with:

1 Way down upon de Swanee ribber,
2 Far, far away,... 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: XaXabcbc dcdc efefXaXa dcdc ghghfcXcXdcdc
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 8,4,8,4,13,
  • Closest metre: trochaic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 1110101110 11101 11011101010 11010111 1111101010 11011 1110101110 11101111 11010111110 110111 1110111110 11001111 111110101110 11111 1110101110 1100111 1111101110 11011 1111011110 1111111 11010111110 110111 1110111110 11001111 1110101010 11111 1110011010 1110111 1101101010 11101 1101101110 1101011 11010111110 110111 1110111110 11001111
  • Amount of stanzas: 6
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 208
  • Average number of words per stanza: 42
  • Amount of lines: 36
  • Average number of symbols per line: 34 (medium-length strings)
  • Average number of words per line: 7
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

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

    The poet repeated the same word home 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 Old Folks At Home;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Stephen C. Foster