Poem analysis is a necessary skill when studying literature. It reveals the main theme and idea laid down by the author in the text. In order for the analysis to be holistic and to reveal all aspects of the lyric text, it is necessary to follow a clear plan when writing it. The question remains: how to write a poem analysis in literature?
What is the purpose of poem analysis?
The analysis of a poem is taught at school in literature lessons. Often, students do not like this activity, as it seems boring to them. But only a holistic analysis of a poem can help to understand the author’s intention and ideas.
For a successful analysis, you must first read the poem completely, without being distracted by external stimuli. If unfamiliar words are found in the text, their meaning should be found in the explanatory dictionary.
Analysis of the poem requires complete silence and concentration. It is necessary to turn off the TV or radio so that nothing distracts you from the poetic text.
What is the complexity of the analysis?
The requirements are becoming more complicated every year for students. And already today they need to master a fairly extensive layer of information, as well as to be well oriented in various literary nuances.
The analysis method of a poem can be different. In some of them, more attention is paid to the form. In other poems, the emphasis is focused on the semantic content of the poem. In the end, this will depend on the goal.
The process for analyzing a poem in high school is simpler. Here, more attention is paid to images, ideas, and content. The analysis is more complex and multidimensional at a university. Students also need to focus on the types of stanzas and rhythms, the artistic means, and the vocabulary.
Despite the fact that a clear system for analyzing the poem is given to both high school students and university students, there is still no rigid algorithm for completing such a task. After all, the poetic text is quite lively and begins to fade with a unified approach to its analysis and the desire to make it in a predetermined framework.
Applying a poem analysis framework is not easy. The fact is that it is easy to destroy the existing harmony of a poetic work. In this case, a break occurs in the meaning, expressing all the most intimate things said by the author. The perception of lyric works is closely related to subjectivity. That is why the use of the parsing method in the analysis of a poem is the real art of understanding the poet.
How to analyze a poem?
In order to analyze the poem in a volumetric and accurate way, it is necessary to draw up a plan to analyze the features of the work point by point. A rough outline of a poem analysis might be as follows:
- The history of the creation of a poetic text – a description of the events that led to its creation. In this part, you can give a little bit of information about the life of the author. You should also indicate how significant this work is for the poet.
- Determining the subject, genre, and theme of the poem. The subject of the image in a lyrical work is the inner world of a person, their thoughts, and feelings in their movement and development.
- The consideration of the plot and composition of the poem. The plot in a lyric work is very often absent. This is mainly due to the fact that lyrics are expressive, not narrative; they express, not narrate.
- The description of the lyrical hero and the presentation of the general mood of the poem. Life in a poetic text is presented through the experiences of the lyrical hero. The concept of a lyrical hero is key for this type of literature. A lyrical hero is a bearer of emotion, feeling, experience, a certain state, on whose behalf the poem is created. The lyrical hero often coincides with the author, but not always. For example, a poet may write a poem on behalf of a vagabond, a robber, or a criminal – but this does not mean that the poet himself or herself is a vagabond or a robber.
- Analysis of the vocabulary of the poem and expressive means. Expressive means make the poem brighter. These include epithets, metaphors, allegories, impersonation, hyperbole, etc. You should also pay attention to the poetic meter of the poem. They can be one of the following types: iambic, trochee, anapest, dactyl, and amphibrachium.
- At the end of the analysis, you need to express your own opinion about what you read, explaining what feelings this work aroused.
This article will help students learn how to analyze a poem. It is necessary not only to highlight the main theme and specifics of the verse but also to pay attention to the poetic length and artistic and expressive means.
If you have never done an analysis of poems before, then it is best to first see how others do it. For example, you can order a sample of a poem analysis. You can do this on services like EssayShark. You will receive an analysis example that will give you a more accurate idea of what to include in your paper and how to analyze correctly. If you want to know more about this service, you can check out this EssayShark review.
