Poetry could be one of the well-known forms of literature. It is popular and a widely appreciated work of art. Poem writers or the poets are recognized and their works considered as classics and timeless. Poetry is a product of the creative and artistic minds of those people gifted in these kinds of craft. Poetry will always form part of our journey with literature. Hundreds upon hundreds of poems were written and had captured our hearts and minds. We can appreciate a lot of poems from the message they convey. Poetry has captured not only the old but even the young generation.
It has become a powerful tool for expressing oneself the creative way. How do we appreciate poetry? How do we understand its main features? How do we unfold the mystery behind poems? The answers lie with our deeper and profound understanding of a poem and its parts. Samuel Johnson said, “The end of writing is to instruct; the end of poetry is to instruct by pleasing”. Certainly one of the features of poetry is to please its reader and not just to inform. Poem may sound simple and ordinary but actually there is more to understand behind a poem. They are more than just the rhymes, verses, and lines.
Poem is not just a structured writing it can also be the most innovative and skillful piece of art. Analyzing a Poem Poem is a diverse form of art. Behind it are features that characterized and distinguish a poem to other forms of literature. Generally poems have the following features: rhymes, order of words, allegory, alliteration, assonance, denotation and connotation, diction, imagery, irony, metaphor, meter, simile, symbolism, tone, compression, description, neologism, and ending. These are like the ingredients that made up a poem. This adds the dimension and creativity and artistry.
However, there are times that some of these features are not present in all the poems. Poems consist of lines and stanzas. Though the whole poem focuses on a certain theme, each line or each stanza contributes to how the readers will grasp the theme. The parts are needed to understand the whole. In fact, each word used in each line is also information. In short, every part of a poem is necessary and is needed to better understand totality of this masterpiece. Let us consider the poem entitled, “Hope” is the thing with feathers. Obviously, the theme of the poem is about hope. The poet describe hope as a “thing with feathers.
” This is the first line of the poem. The next 3 lines of the first stanza are also the poet’s ideas of describing the term “hope. ” The first line is necessary because the poet is encouraging the readers to think and visualize what the poem is all about. The words “feathers,” “perches,” and “sings” are words that will make the readers think that the poet is comparing hope to birds. These words (feathers, perches, sings) are found not in one line only. In fact, each word is found in each line. The second stanza heightens the poets claim that hope can be compared to birds. The word “Birds” itself appeared in this stanza.
This stanza describes how hope is being challenged. The second line indicates that problems could affect the “little Bird” or should we say the little hope humans have amidst problems. The last line indicates that hope can give encouragement to humans, “That kept so many warm. ” The last stanza, specifically the last line (It asked a crumb—of Me. ), the bird or the hope is asking for a crumb or food. The crumb refers to humans (of Me). The poet simply means that hope is always present (chilliest land, strangest Sea). So in times of struggles, what humans must do is to submit to what having hope can do.
Before arriving at the message, the poet uses each word, line, and stanza of the poem in order to express the theme. Without the first stanza, we wouldn’t know how hope works. Without the second stanza, we wouldn’t know how hope is affected with programs. Without the last stanza, we wouldn’t know that hope is always available. Let us try to briefly analyze another poem, “I like a look of Agony. ” This is a short poem with two stanzas that could be related to convulsion and even to death. There is a strong irony in the poem as the title express the love for agony or suffering.
Again, each word and line exposes what the poet wants to impart to the readers. Conclusion Observe how the following features are applied in the given poems: rhymes, order of words, allegory, alliteration, assonance, denotation and connotation, diction, imagery, irony, metaphor, meter, simile, symbolism, tone, compression, description, neologism, and ending. By using and understanding the elements of a poem one can fully grasp its significance. There is also a need to identify the frequent style the writer is using in order to understand many of his or her work. One writer may have a usual theme or subject in his poems.
There could also be many figurative languages being used. Also learn to recognize the tone of most poetry in order to feel the emotion of the writer. Poet conveys a lot of symbolism which one cannot identify quickly. One must be able to criticize the quality of a poem base on these features. Constructing your own poem takes a lot of skill and understanding of the different applications in poetry. The effects of poetry and the impact it creates is the one that really matters. The purpose of the writer is not just to use words without clear purpose. The different aspects of a single poem are carefully studied and applied.