The heroic couplet form—in which each stanza contains a rhymed couplet—would have been considered an antiquated style in Teasdale’s day, as it is now. The form was most popular in the 17th century, and has since been used as a means to evoke an outdated, highly formal tone. In a sense, it is fitting to use an antique form in a poem such as “There will Come Soft Rains” that attempts to tap into a much older consciousness.
World War I had just ended in 1918, only two years prior to this poem’s publication. Since WWI brought with it the introduction of widescale chemical warfare, the effects of the war on the human population and psychology were devastating, but the earth suffered great losses as well. Notice however, that the ending of the poem offers a comforting end to this suffering: nature will renew itself, and the horrors of human warfare will prove temporary.
