Edexcel GCSE English Literature · 1ET0
Paper 2
A traditional four-line stanza, usually alternating four-stress and three-stress lines, with rhyme between the second and fourth lines.
Revise: I started Early – Took my DogThe poem has six quatrains and draws on the ballad stanza and the common metre of hymns. Longer and shorter lines generally alternate, creating a recognisable, song-like movement. This familiar pattern suits the apparently simple story of an outing, but it also provides an unsettling contrast with the threat of being consumed.