I Ask My Mother to Sing

“I Ask My Mother to Sing” features neither an identifiable rhyme scheme nor a constant meter. This means the poem is an example of free verse. However, the “free” in “free verse” is misleading. While Lee is free to implement his own structure and meter, he nonetheless creates a tight and orderly poem. The first three stanzas are quatrains and the last stanza is a couplet. The tidy layout of the poem reflects the controlled tone. Lee’s precision is displayed in the tone and in the form and the meter, with most lines somewhere between seven to 13 syllables.

Although Lee’s poem is free verse, it doesn’t look all that different from a sonnet. Like “I Ask My Mother to Sing,” a sonnet contains 14 lines, with three quatrains and a concluding couplet. Sonnets possess an abab cdcd efef gg rhyme scheme and follow iambic pentameter. Lee’s poem doesn’t rhyme and doesn’t adhere to iambic pentameter; yet, still, it doesn’t look all that different from a sonnet. The proximity and distance of the poem’s form relate to the poem’s complex idea of memories.