Book Anatomy · The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden: Prose style
17 lenses on prose style for The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9 H10 H11 H12 H13 H14 H15 H16 H17
H1. Readability score per chapter. Count
Flesch reading ease for the whole book is about 82 (higher is easier; 60 to 70 is plain English).
Reading ease per chapter, chapter by chapter
H2. Vocabulary range. Count
4,942 different words. On average 48 in every 100 words are new within a 500 word stretch. 2,102 words appear only once.
H3. Signature words: what this author uses far more than others. Count
mary, martha, garden, robin, magic. See the full lens on the book page.
H4. Adverb and adjective rates. Count
About 10.93 words ending in 'ly' and 5.3 likely adjectives per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
'ly' words per 1,000, chapter by chapter
H5. Share of weak verbs such as "was" and "had". Count
'Was', 'were', 'had', 'is' and 'are' make up 4.0% of all words.
H6. Passive voice rate. Count
About 3.6% of sentences use a passive form such as 'was taken'. (rough estimate from word lists)
H7. Variety of sentence openings. Count
The five most common first words start 32% of sentences: i, she, he, the, it.
| First word | Sentences |
|---|---|
| i | 551 |
| she | 453 |
| he | 404 |
| the | 231 |
| it | 229 |
| mary | 169 |
| and | 133 |
| but | 130 |
| you | 128 |
| medlock | 123 |
H8. Rhythm: how much sentence length varies. Count
Sentence length varies by 0.77 of its mean on average (higher means a more varied rhythm).
Variation per chapter, chapter by chapter
H9. Similes and metaphors: how many, and of what kind. Both
216 likely similes ('like a', 'as ... as'): 2.66 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Ch 1, para 2: When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true, too. She …
Ch 1, para 8: She was grinding her teeth and saying this over and over again when she heard her mother come out on the veranda with someone. She was with a …
Ch 1, para 31: It was in that strange and sudden way that Mary found out that she had neither father nor mother left; that they had died and been carried away …
Ch 2, para 9: He sang it until the other children heard and laughed, too; and the crosser Mary got, the more they sang “Mistress Mary, quite contrary”; and after that as …
Ch 2, para 44: “Eh!” she said, “but you are like an old woman. Don’t you care?”
Ch 2, para 56: “I shall not want to go poking about,” said sour little Mary and just as suddenly as she had begun to be rather sorry for Mr. Archibald Craven …
Burnett uses similes frequently, often comparing natural phenomena to human emotions or states. Examples include the moor as a giant wind entity (c5), the garden door hidden like a secret (c8), and Colin's Magic as electric batteries (c27). Metaphors centre on locked doors representing isolation and the garden as healing.
Chapters: Ch 5, Ch 8, Ch 27
She ran only to make herself warm, and she hated the wind which rushed at her face and roared and held her back as if it were some giant she could not see. (Ch 5, para 2)
if it was the key to the closed garden, and she could find out where the door was, she could perhaps open it and see what was inside (Ch 8, para 2)
thoughts—just mere thoughts—are as powerful as electric batteries—as good for one as sunlight is, or as bad for one as poison (Ch 27, para 2)
H10. Senses used: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Both
Share of sense words. sight 61%, sound 20%, touch 15%, taste 2%, smell 1%. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Sense | Words |
|---|---|
| sight | 942 |
| sound | 309 |
| touch | 231 |
| taste | 34 |
| smell | 18 |
All five senses appear throughout. Sight dominates (descriptions of the moor, garden blooms, portraits). Sound includes the mysterious crying (c5 to 6), bird calls, and wind. Touch features warmth of sun and earth. Smell and taste are minimal but present in garden and food scenes.
Chapters: Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 20, Ch 22, Ch 25
It was a curious sound—it seemed almost as if a child were crying somewhere. Sometimes the wind sounded rather like a child crying, but presently Mistress Mary felt quite sure this sound was inside the house, not outside it. (Ch 5, para 37)
And the sun fell warm upon his face like a hand with a lovely touch. (Ch 20, para 71)
He could speak robin (which is a quite distinct language not to be mistaken for any other). To speak robin to a robin is like speaking French to a Frenchman. (Ch 25, para 3)
H11. Repetition, lists of three and other patterns. Both
27 lists of three in the pattern 'a, b and c': 0.33 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Repetition anchors the narrative: 'Magic' recurs from c23 onwards as a healing principle; locked doors and keys repeat across chapters 2 to 8; spring's arrival echoes through c7 to 27. Lists of three appear in character introductions and animal companions. The robin appears repeatedly as guide.
Chapters: Ch 2, Ch 4, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 23, Ch 27
Because when you were born the garden door was locked and the key was buried. And it has been locked for ten years. (Ch 13, para 73)
I shall stop being queer,” he said, “if I go every day to the garden. There is Magic in there—good Magic, you know, Mary. I am sure there is. (Ch 23, para 23)
In the garden,” it came back like a sound from a golden flute. “In the garden! (Ch 27, para 22)
H12. Old words that may trip modern readers. Count
Old forms that may trip a modern reader: thee, thy, art, ere, nay, thine.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| thee | 90 |
| thy | 21 |
| art | 15 |
| ere | 4 |
| nay | 1 |
| thine | 1 |
| wilt | 1 |
H13. Showing against telling, with examples. AI
Burnett shows character change through action and dialogue rather than summary. Mary's transformation appears in her skipping (c8), her willingness to work in the garden (c9 to 11), and her care for Colin (c13 to 18). Colin's recovery is shown through his standing (c21 to 22) and walking (c23), not told.
Chapters: Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 13, Ch 17, Ch 21, Ch 22
The skipping-rope was a wonderful thing. She counted and skipped, and skipped and counted, until her cheeks were quite red (Ch 8, para 42)
I told thee tha’ could as soon as tha’ stopped bein’ afraid,” answered Dickon. “An’ tha’s stopped. (Ch 22, para 6)
It’s planted!” said Colin at last. “And the sun is only slipping over the edge. Help me up, Dickon. I want to be standing when it goes. That’s part of the Magic. (Ch 22, para 64)
H14. How much description comes before action. Both
Description often precedes action but is woven throughout. The moor and manor are described before Mary acts (c3). Garden descriptions build before restoration work begins (c8 to 9). However, dialogue and action frequently interrupt description, keeping pace brisk.
Chapters: Ch 3, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 20
The carriage lamps shed a yellow light on a rough-looking road which seemed to be cut through bushes and low-growing things which ended in the great expanse of dark apparently spread out before and around them. (Ch 3, para 16)
The high walls which shut it in were covered with the leafless stems of climbing roses which were so thick that they were matted together (Ch 9, para 2)
The arch of it looked very high and the small snowy clouds seemed like white birds floating on outspread wings below its crystal blueness. (Ch 20, para 51)
H15. Filter words such as "saw", "felt", "heard". Count
Filter words ('saw', 'felt', 'heard' and so on): 9.15 per 1,000 words.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| thought | 164 |
| seemed | 138 |
| felt | 109 |
| heard | 95 |
| knew | 87 |
| saw | 81 |
| wondered | 31 |
| watched | 19 |
| noticed | 11 |
| realized | 8 |
H16. Shifts in tone. AI
Tone shifts from bleak and lonely (c1 to 3) to curious and hopeful (c4 to 8), then to conflict and tension (c13 to 17), before settling into triumph and warmth (c20 to 27). The mysterious crying creates gothic tension that resolves into joy. Colin's hysteria (c17) marks a tonal turning point.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 13, Ch 17, Ch 20
It was true that there was no one in the bungalow but herself and the little rustling snake. (Ch 1, para 31)
It was a curious sound—it seemed almost as if a child were crying somewhere. Sometimes the wind sounded rather like a child crying, but presently Mistress Mary felt quite sure this sound was inside the house, not outside it. (Ch 5, para 37)
I SHALL LIVE FOREVER—AND EVER—AND EVER! (Ch 20, para 1)
H17. How the comedy works. AI
Comedy arises from Mary's contrary nature and blunt speech, Martha's Yorkshire dialect misunderstandings, and Colin's imperious demands softening into boyish enthusiasm. Dickon's charm with animals provides gentle humour. The humour is character-driven rather than plot-based.
Chapters: Ch 4, Ch 10, Ch 14, Ch 19, Ch 23
Mistress Mary, quite contrary, How does your garden grow? With silver bells, and cockle shells, And marigolds all in a row. (Ch 2, para 8)
Once in India I saw a boy who was a Rajah. He had rubies and emeralds and diamonds stuck all over him. (Ch 14, para 64)
Tell me about Rajahs. (Ch 14, para 127)
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