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Aug 16, 2021 · How to Analyze Poetry: 10 Steps for Analyzing a Poem. From flowing words to rhythmic beats, poems have a lyrical quality that is pleasing to the ear. But to truly understand poetry, you must unpack it—examine each element on its own to discover what a poem means.
- Summary
- Structure
- Poetic Techniques
- Analysis Ofdesign
The poem begins with the speaker discussing a spider and moth he found on the top of a flower. They came together there, as if kindred spirits, in order for the spider to eat the moth. He wonders over this convergence and equates it to a witch’s brew. There are a few light-hearted lines in which the speaker plays with potion-related imagery. He the...
‘Design’ by Robert Frost is a fourteen-line sonnet that is separated into two stanzas. The first is an octet, meaning it contains eight lines (usually further divided into quatrains, sets of four lines). The second stanza is a sestet or set of six lines. Depending on the structure of the sonnet, Shakespearean or Petrarchan, the divisions can become...
Within ‘Design’ frost makes use of several poetic techniques. These include alliteration, enjambment, juxtaposition, and caesura. Alliteration occurs when words are used in succession, or at least appear close together, and begin with the same letter. It appears a number of times in this piece, but a few examples include “flower” and “froth” in lin...
Stanza Two
The second stanza provides a different structure for considering life, death, intelligent design, and the intentions of that intelligence. Frost ends ‘Design’ with a series of questions. They do not provide the reader with any answers, as Frost did not have any. The first and second have to do with the position of the spider on the flower. Frost wants to understand how it’s possible that the world came together so perfectly in order to steer the “white moth thither in the night” so that it mi...
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- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
- Read the Poem. First, of course, you should read the poem. This may seem obvious, but many readers need to be reminded that when analyzing a poem, it helps to read through it once, without stopping to look for symbols or do too much analysis.
- Identify the Type of Poem. Being familiar with the different types of poems can be helpful when it comes to analyzing poetry. Although in contemporary poetry the rules are less binding, some themes are typically associated with specific forms.
- Consider the Title. You can also look to a poem’s title for important clues. They might hint to a poem’s theme, or work ironically in opposition to the poem’s main idea.
- Who Is the Speaker? The speaker can provide lots of insight to the point of view and perspective from which the story is told. If the poem is told in the first person, for example, the text automatically takes on a more personal feel.
- Read the poem aloud. Poetry is meant to be read aloud. Reading a poem quietly to yourself will not give you a complete experience of a poem. When poets compose poems, they engage in word play and utilise rhymes and rhythms that affect the meaning of poem.
- Unpack what the poem is about. Poems generally convey a narrative, or describe feelings or objects. There will be exceptions to this rule, but it is unlikely that you will be presented with a poem that hard during an exam.
- Pay attention to the rhythm. Poems have rhythm. One of the traditional differences between regular literature and poetry is the use rhythm and metre.
- Look for enjambment. Enjambment is an important technique used to develop meaning. It is an oft-cited but regularly misunderstood technique. When poetry is enjambed one line seems to spill over into the next line because it is not capped by punctuation.
To analyze a poem, you must break it down into all its important elements and explain how they work together to create an effect or reinforce a meaning. Read your assignment carefully to find out what you’re being asked to do, since there are many ways to present an analysis.
The first step to analyzing a poem is to simply look at it and note any observations. Questions to ask: 1. Does anything about the poem stand out? 2. Does the poem have a title? If so, does it catch your attention? 3. What do you notice about how the poem is organized? 4. Does there appear to be a rhyme scheme of any sort? Format
Apr 1, 2016 · 1. Go to a café. Get an espresso. 2. Put on a black beret (also known as: “thinking cap”). 3. Read the poem, once through, to yourself. Underline any words you don’t know. Before you go any further, look up those words and write the definitions in the margin.
