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

SOMETHING startles me where I thought I was safest;
I withdraw from the still woods I loved;... 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: abXcdc eXfedX ffabgXa XbfXbfhfcehfgXefgfgX ihXchfbaXbiacXgf afhfXhhXa
  • Stanza lengths (in strings): 6,6,7,20,16,9,
  • Closest metre: trochaic pentameter
  • Сlosest rhyme: enclosed rhyme
  • Сlosest stanza type: tercets
  • Guessed form: unknown form
  • Metre: 101011111110 101001111 10111101001 10110101100111001 10111100110101001 1 111001011110 11100111001 1111011101110 1 1110100010100010011 0110010011011001011 1110101100 11011001101010 111111011011 11111000011011011101 1010100111011110 11101101 111110110011 010100101 011001111100110101 0100110010 01110010100101 0100100101010 010110010101010 01010001010110100 1 01100100111101101 0111010110101111 11 0101011011 01101000101010010 1001 1001011001010011 1 10011001011011100 11 010101001010011110 01011 1100 1011101010 100110010110011 01100101 10010010011101011000 1 100101010010110100 0100 11010101010 1011001110 111011100110 10100101010010101 1011010100101 11101101111110011 110010010110101110 1001 1111011010011110 01111101010 011011010100110 10000110 010110011010110 0010101010100100100 1 011010100011011100 011
  • Amount of stanzas: 6
  • Average number of symbols per stanza: 557
  • Average number of words per stanza: 93
  • Amount of lines: 66
  • Average number of symbols per line: 50 (strings are more long than medium ones)
  • Average number of words per line: 8
  • Mood of the speaker:

    The punctuation marks are various. Neither mark predominates.

  • The author used lexical repetitions to emphasize a significant image; i, to, you, of, behold, it, that, and, such are repeated.

    The poet used anaphora at the beginnings of some neighboring lines. The same words i, how, the, that, it are repeated.

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

  • summary of This Compost;
  • central theme;
  • idea of the verse;
  • history of its creation;
  • critical appreciation.

Good luck in your poetry interpretation practice!

More information about poems by Walt Whitman