Gwendolyn Brooks's poem is a play on the sonnet form. Like a sonnet, the poem consists of 14 lines. The lines approximate iambic pentameter, so there are (depending on how the reader pronounces the words) five iambs or pairs of unstressed, stressed syllables. However, unlike a standard sonnet, the lines in Brooks's sonnet don't overtly rhyme, so the absence of a pronounced rhyme scheme subverts the traditional sonnet genre and makes it Brooks's own.

Not only does Brooks's poem rebel against the typical sonnet form, but it undercuts the heroic theme of war. Based on applicable information about this sonnet, it's reasonable to describe the speaker as a Black soldier preparing to fight in World War II. Yet the tone isn't heroic or masculine—it's mainly modest and uncertain.

The immediate concerns of the soldier aren't glory but food. “I hold my honey and I store my bread,” declares the soldier (Line 1). The tone is declarative. The speaker tells the reader about things he can control. He holds the honey and bread, so they're under his domain.