Analyzing The Poem 'Invictus'

533 Words3 Pages
Diego Minarro English Language 4.5 William Ernest Henley Language, Usage & Style The diction in the poem “Invictus” is neutral. Throughout the poem, William uses ordinary words instead of words that seem to be more elegant or extravagant. The language of the poem is strong. Meaning that the poem has a very strong meaning to it and can in some way have a positive effect on people as to motivate them. No dialogue is used in this poem but the author does use “I” several times. The poem is more of an author to reader type of poem where the author is talking to the reader. Although the diction of the poem is very neutral and ordinary, the poem gives out a lot of emotion and passion to anyone who reads it. The sentences in “Invictus” are simple…show more content…
The rhyme scheme that was used in this poem was an abab-cbcb-dede-efefef-ghgh type of sentences (Tahira Web). The sentences are short and contain only eight syllables per line. There are no rhetorical questions in the poem, only statements. Invictus is a first person type of poem. William used a lot of “I” and “me” throughout the poem. The poem goes from starting off very dark and dull, “Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole”, to ending with a lot of emotion and passion, “I am the master of my fate, and I am the captain of my soul”. The way William Ernest Henley used his words throughout this poem was by starting off the poem showing a dark and bad place he was in, then converting that dark place to something that can be conquered and be dealt with. The poem is organized with stanzas and not scattered all over the place (Cantrell Web). There are 4 stanzas in the poem “Invictus”. Each stanza has some sort of different meaning to one another but also end up going with each other. The syntax of the essay relates to the poem by showing that it has a very deep and emotional meaning to it. The poem shows this by the phrases that are used throughout the poem. Invictus could be taken as a hopeful poem for those who are currently
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