Poems are beautiful… you’re overwhelmed with emotions when you read your favorite ones, aren’t you? When you’re asked to analyze them, however, you encounter a problem: how do translate those emotions into an essay?
Why Should You Know How to Analyze a Poem?
So what exactly do you need to do when analyzing a poem? You need to write an essay, in accordance with all standards of academic writing. Then, you need to analyze all aspects of the poem, such as the title, structure, rhythm, and sound, language, and images. Most of all, you should analyze the poet’s tone.
As you can see, the poem analysis doesn’t have much to do with your perception of the poem. You’re not writing a personal essay to show what the poet made you feel. This should be an objective analysis that shows you understand the essential elements of poetry. Have you ever written a process analysis essay? Well, the poem analysis is something similar.
It’s not an easy paper to write, but it’s very important if you’re taking a related course.
Now, let’s see: how do you analyze a poem?
Writing the Poem Analysis Essay: Your Step-By-Step Guide
When you’re trying to learn how to analyze poems, you should focus on few aspects of the piece. Let’s start with our step-by-step guide.
- Pre-Writing Stages: Reading and Understanding
Before you can start writing the analysis, you need to read and understand the poem. Read it very carefully. Then, read it again. If you read it out loud, it will be easier for you to catch the rhythm. These are the questions you need to answer, so you’ll know you understand the poem:
- Is there a title? What does it mean and how is it related to the content? The poet chose it carefully. What expectations does it create?
- Who is the speaker? Is it the poet? Is it another character?
- How would you interpret the poem?
You’ll be getting ideas throughout the reading process, so make sure to note them down. Once you’re done with the reading, you’ll be ready for the analysis.
- Understand the Theme and the Poem’s Literal Meaning
Are there any words you don’t know? Is a word you think you know used in an unexpected way? Do you notice any important words that convey the meaning of the poem? You might need a dictionary to analyze the poem. Poets are known for creating their own language out of the words we already know.
What’s the literal meaning of the words? This understanding will help you reveal the poem’s theme. That’s the poet’s purpose for writing this poet. It’s about the idea they want to convey. The description of the theme will be the main point of your poem analysis.
- Analyze the Structure, Sound, and Rhythm
When you’re writing a character analysis essay, you’re focused on the personalities of the piece. A poem imposes a different approach. Instead of characters, you’ll be analyzing its theme, structure, sound, and rhythm.
How is the poem organized? Are there numbered sections or individual stanzas? How are they related to one another? How does that structure help the rhythm and sound? Do you notice a particular pattern of rhymes? Does it affect your response to the poem?
- How do You Relate the Language with Images?
A poem is more than words. What images does that language create? This is the point where most students get stuck and decide to get help from college essay services with professional writers. You have to understand the symbolism in order to describe the images the poet wanted you to see.
Now, Do You Know How to Write a Poem Analysis Essay?
If you were wondering how to write an essay analyzing a poem, now you have proper guidelines to get you started. Preparation is where half of the success lies. Read the poem. Read it as many times as necessary for you to understand its natural flow. Sometimes the meaning is hidden behind the symbolism.
Writing poem analyses can be really fun. However, it’s also a challenging process. You’re required to translate the poet’s soul into an essay that follows the strict rules of academic writing. It’s not easy to write an analysis that’s not dry. Sometimes you’ll feel like you’re not doing justice to the beautiful piece of poetry.
When it’s a mandatory assignment, however, you don’t have much choice. You have to write it, so you might as well write it well. Start working on it way before the deadline, so you’ll give yourself time to understand the poem.
You’re Ready to Start with Poem Analyzation
If you’re taking a course related to poetry, you’ll have to write these assignments. If you’re writing your own poetry, it’s even more important for you to analyze poems well. This skill will help you identify the main points of attraction in a poem. Then, you can find your own way to master the details. Thanks to the tips above, you know how to start a poem analysis essay. The only thing left for you to do is to practice that knowledge. Start writing that analysis!
If you need help with it, you know where you can get it, right? XpertWriters is here for you!