Structure
Many of Tennyson's poems are in the form of a dramatic monologue. However, Mariana, like The Lady of Shallott, is more accurately a lyrical narrative. It contains elements of dramatic monologies in that it contains a refrain that carries through the poem as found in Oriana and other poems. Oriana is completely a dramatic monologue and Mariana is not because Tennyson represents how the title figure is unable to linguistically control her own poem, which reinforces the themes of the poem. This technique is used again in Tennyson's later poem, The Two Voices. The rhyme scheme of the poem, abab cddc efef, is different than the standard ballad rhyme that serves to contain the poem then allow a free expression. The middle quatrain of the stanzas returns in theme to the beginning in a cyclical pattern while the last quatrain's lines contain the same words.
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