How to make sense of a poem

Stephen C. Behrendt

Read the poem several times, on separate occasions; think about it between readings. Decide exactly what it says on a literal level first: figure out which verbs go with which nouns, which modifiers with which nouns, etc. In other words, get it straight on a grammatical level. If you don't know what a word means, look it up. Examine the title carefully - sometimes the meaning of a poem depends on it. To get the rhythmic and sound effects, either read the poem aloud (where your roommate can't hear you and think you're crazy) or read it to yourself mentally.

You may find it especially helpful first to paraphrase the poem. Try to put the poem into prose, changing whatever you need to change, as a way of figuring out just what the popet is saying, and why, and why the poet has chosen to write the poem the way she or he has done. You may need to try several paraphrases; you'll find that each paraphrase will become easier as you get the hang of this process of putting the poem into your own words and voice.

Here are some questions that may prove helpful in the process:

1. Who is the speaker? What sort of person is s/he?

2. To whom is s/he speaking? What sort of person is this listener?

3. What is the occasion?

4. What is the setting in time (time of day, season, century, etc.)?

5. What is the setting in place (indoors or out, city, country, nation, etc.)?

6. State the central idea or theme in a sentence or two.

7. Discuss the diction of the poem. Point out words that are well chosen and explain why they appear so. Are there "key words" or significant patterns of language? If so, why and what do they contribute to the poem?

8. Discuss the imagery of the poem. What sorts of images are used, and how do they achieve their effect?

9. Point out examples of simile, metaphor, personification, etc., and explain why these devices are used.

10. Point out and explain any symbols. If the poem is allegorical, explain the allegory.

11. Point out and explain examples of paradox, overstatement, understatement, and irony, where significant. What is their function in the poem?

12. Point out and explain any allusions. What is their function?

13. What is the rhyme scheme? Does it fall into one of the conventional patterns (couplet, sonnet, ballad, alternating rhyme, etc.)?

14. What is the meter?

15. Discuss how well the mechanical technique of the poem is suited to the poem's content.

16. Does the poem belong to any particular genre (elegy, sonnet, pastoral, dramatic monologue, etc.)? If so, in what ways does it follow or contradict the conventions of that genre?

17. Look at the form of the poem - the number of lines, their length, their arrangement on the page. Does the form relate in some necessary or special way to the poem's content? Can you figure out why the poet chose this particular form for his poem?

18. What is the poet trying to do in the poem; that is, what is her/his intention? What idea or feeling (if any) is s/he trying to communicate? Does s/he succeed?

last revised 8/1/14