Introduction to Poetry

Goal of the Unit To gain an appreciation for poetry To understand that poetry exists all around us in different forms To be able to analyze poetry using specific reading and writing strategies To be able to write different forms of poetry using various elements

What is poetry? A poem may appear to mean very different things to different readers, and all of these meanings may be different from what the author thought he meant. For instance, the author may have been writing some peculiar personal experience, which he saw quite unrelated to anything outside; yet for the reader the poem may become the expression of a general situation, as well as of some private experience of his own. The reader's interpretation may differ from the author's and be equally valid-- it may even be better. There may be much more in a poem than the author was aware of. The different interpretations may all be partial formulations of one thing; the ambiguities may be due to the fact that the poem means more, not less, than ordinary speech can communicate. --T.S. Eliot

What is a poet? A poet is somebody who feels, and who expresses his feelings through words. This may sound easy. It isn't. A lot of people think or believe or know they feel -- but that's thinking or believing or knowing; not feeling. and poetry is feeling -- not knowing or believing or thinking. Almost anybody can learn to think or believe or know, but not a single human being can be taught to feel. Why? Because whenever you think or you believe or you know, you're a lot of other people; but the moment you feel, you're NOBODY-BUT-YOURSELF. -- e.e. cummings

What is a poem? A POEM IS LIKE A PERSON. We need to "meet," experience, and think about a poem many times before we can really know it.

What is a poem? A POEM IS A SPEECH. A speaker in a situation (sometimes including a specific setting and audience) is expressing perceptions, thoughts, and feelings, directly as well as indirectly. We infer theme and tone partly from what the speaker says and how he says it.

A POEM IS AN ARTFUL WEAVE OF WORDS. Consider every single element and feature of STYLE -- the language, the verbal expression of the poem... syntax (sentence structure), diction (word choice); imagery, figurative language, symbolism ; punctuation and other mechanics of writing  STYLE suits speaker, situation, theme, and tone, and contributes to their development.

A POEM IS A MUSICAL WORK OF ART. Consider every single element and feature of FORM -- the sounds and the visual arrangement of the poem... . rhyme rhythm or meter line breaks (end-stopped or run-on) stanza length and stanza breaks repetition and devices of sound, traditional forms (ballad, sonnet, blank verse) FORM complements everything else in the poem: speaker, situation, theme, tone, style.

What are the Elements of Poetry? Forms of Poetry Lyric poem: short and focuses on speaker’s feelings Narrative poem: longer and tells a story Poetry Lyric Narrative Riddle Free Verse Ballad Epic Sonnet

Forms of Poetry Riddle Narrative Poem Sonnet Free Verse Elegy Biopoem Limerick Found Poem Puzzle in a poem Tells a story “little song” of 14 lines Free from structure Poem for the dead Describes life of a person 5 line humorous poem Found from other texts

Use T.I.M.E. to Analyze Poetry T – Theme I – Imagery  Figurative Language M – Music  Sound Devices E – Emotions  Mood and Tone

What is the meaning of the poem? T - Theme What is the meaning of the poem? Determine and Analyze the THEME by: Title Speaker Situation Form Content Style

I - Imagery Imagery involves any type of image the author creates for the reader. Includes use of Figurative Language Imagery: A word or phrase that appeals to one or more of the five senses

Language Devices Simile: Figurative Language/Figures of Speech: Writing that is not meant to be taken literally Example: He made me so mad I wanted to die. Simile: A figure of speech that uses like or as to make a direct comparison between two unlike ideas My love is like a red rose.

More Language Devices Metaphor: Personification: A figure of speech in which something is described as though it were something else Example: He is such a pig when he eats! Personification: A type of figurative language in which a non-human subject is given human characteristics Example: The tree waved excitedly in the wind.

More Language Devices Metonymy: Synecdoche:: Substitution of the name of one thing for another Example: “crown” for “royalty” Synecdoche:: Whole represents a part, or a part represents a whole Example: “set of wheels”, “the press”

More Language Devices Hyperbole: Symbolism: A great exaggeration to emphasize strong feeling Example: I will love you until all the seas go dry Symbolism: Something that represents something else

M – Music of Poetry Rhythm: Pattern of beats or stresses in spoken or written language Rhyme: Repetition of sounds at the end of words Example: Roses are red, violets are blue…..

Rhyme End Rhyme: - rhyme occurs at the end words of a line Example: Roses are red, violets are blue….. Internal Rhyme: - rhyme occurs inside a line Example: The cool school is filled with fools . Slant or Approximate Rhyme: -rhyming words sound similar but not exact Example: “ill” and “shell”; “soul” and “all”

Rhyme Scheme Rhyme Scheme: - Each new sound is given a new letter A regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem (abab cdcd efef gg) - Each new sound is given a new letter Practice identifying the rhyme scheme of the riddle poems.

Sound Devices Onomatopoeia: The use of words that imitate sounds Example: The buzz of the bee was very loud. Alliteration: Repetition of initial consonant sounds Example: Sister Suzy sat on the seashore until suddenly she was swallowed by a shark.

Sound Devices Assonance: Consonance: Repetition: Repetition of vowel sounds Example: silent time, white lilacs Consonance: Repetition of consonant sounds Example: litter and letter Repetition: The use, more than once, of any element of language Example: “I sprang to the stirrup, and Jarvis, and he;I galloped, Derrick galloped, we galloped all three”

What emotions does the author create in the poem? Emotions of Poetry What emotions does the author create in the poem? Tone: - Speaker’s attitude toward the subject Mood: The feeling created in the reader by a literary work

Poetry Term Posters In pairs, you will create posters for two poetry terms we have learned. On each poster, you will include The term A definition in your own words Example Visual that illustrates the term in use After, you will TEACH your term to the class.

One-Pager - Prose On the front side of your paper, write a one-page response to the text. The response is NOT a summary. It discusses your thoughts, feelings, or attitudes about the text or a specific part of the text (a line or sentence).

One-Pager - Visual On the back, create a “collage” of the following: A quote or line(s) from the text An image or picture A sentence about the text – your thoughts or interpretation. A question and answer about the text.