This is an analysis of the poem Heredity that begins with:

A soldier of the Cromwell stamp,
With sword and psalm-book by his side, ... 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: abab cdcd aeae cfcf
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 4,4,4,4,
  • Closest metre: iambic tetrameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: alternate rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: ballad stanza
  • Metre: 01000101 01111101 11010111 011111001 11010111 01111101 01011111 11011101 01011101 11010111 11110011 010101001 01111101 01110101 010111001 01010101
  • Amount of stanzas: 4
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 148
  • Average number of words per stanza: 27
  • Amount of lines: 16
  • Average number of symbols per line: 37 (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; and, to are repeated.

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

    The author used the same word in 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 Heredity;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Thomas Bailey Aldrich