Poetry Analysis Essay

For your poetry analysis, you will select a poem that is in one of the forms we
read about and discussed in class, and you will conduct a close reading of that
poem. You may choose any poem from The Making of a Poem (aside from those I
conducted an extensive close reading on in class) or among the poems I passed
out in class.
Basic Requirements

Focused on a poem
4 pages, double-spaced (approximately 1000 words)
Times New Roman, 12 pt. font, 1 margins all around
MLA Format
3-4 sources aside from the text (you may use one of the articles or the introductory
material in The Making of a Poem, but you must find the other sources on your
own)
Clear thesis statement
Specific quotations from the text
Conclusion that connects the work to some outside concern

Remember that for a poetry analysis, you should:

First get a grasp of what is happening in the poem
Hypothesize themes of the poem
Look carefully at the specific word choice and phrasing (a dictionary can
help)
Be able to articulate how the form enriches the content; in other words, why
did the poet choose this form as the scaffolding for what s/he wanted to say?
Organization
Introduction should give some historical background for the poet and/or
poem that will help place it in context
Introduction should include a clear, arguable thesis
Body paragraphs should each focus on one element of the poem (for
example, one strategy could be paragraphs focusing on the
narrative/situation in the poem, the form, specific word choice/phrasing;
another strategy might use the first two paragraphs to look carefully at the
way the situation and word choice work together, then move to formthere
are many options)
Conclusion should make an argument about how this specific poem is useful
for understanding the contemporary world. This could be a personal,
political, and/or cultural argument.
On the next page, you will find a list of questions adapted from How to Read a
Poem that can serve as your pre-writing.

Poetry Analysis Essay

*This is an
example of a
close reading
that isnt relying on
textual evidence.

from How
to Read a Poem

What does the title suggest?

Who is the speaker? How can you tell?

What situation is presented? Note words or phrases that cue you into the
situation.

Who or what is the audience? Note words or phrases that address a

particular audience or audiences.

What form, if any, does the poem take? How does that form connect to the
theme(s) and situation(s) in the poem?

How is form related to content? Use your Bedford Guide and The Making of
a Poem to remind you of the usual topic of such a form.

How is sound an important, active element of the poem? Discuss rhythm

and rhyme.

Does the poem spring from an identifiable historical moment? Identify at

least three words or phrases that indicate a particular engagement with
history.

Does the poem speak from a specific culture? Identify words or phrases that
indicate the poems cultural situatedness. Does the poem have its own
vernacular? How does that relate to culture?

Does the poem use imagery to achieve a particular effect? Give at least two
examples of imagery, and provide alternative ways those images could be
interpreted.

What symbols seem to be present? List at least two, and indicate how they
can be interpreted.

Poetry Analysis Essay

Does the poem use unusual words or use words in an unusual way?

What is the mood? What words or phrases indicate this mood?

When are lines enjambed and

when are they end-stopped?
How does this affect the
sound of the line? How does
affect the meaning of the
line?

this

Adapted from:
Hirsch, Edward. "How to Read a
Poem." Poets.org. Academy
of American Poets, 27 Nov.
2007. Web. 29 Dec. 2015.
Strand, Mark, and Eavan Boland.
The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms. New York: Norton,
2001. Print.