Poetry Analysis ___________

1. The title of this poem is_________________________________________________.

2. It was written by ________________________________________.
3. This poem is written in the ___________(1st or 3rd) person point of view.
4. Who is the speaker?
________________________________________________________________________
5. What is the basic situation?
________________________________________________________________________
6. What is the poems setting?
________________________________________________________________________
7. Are there conflicts in the poem? If so, what are they?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
8. What kind(s) of imagery do you see most often in the poem? Give some examples.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
9. Does the poem have meter? If so, what is it?
________________________________________________________________________
10. Does your poem have a rhyme scheme? If so, what is it?
________________________________________________________________________
11. What other sound devices (alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia) have been
included by the poet? Give examples of each.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
12. What figures of speech are included ( metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole,
metonymy, apostrophe, etc. )? Include examples and explain the effect each one has on
your understanding and appreciation of the poem.

________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
13. What is the mood of this poem? Explain your answer.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
14. Identify words which have a connotative meaning which help to clarify the authors
tone. Explain each example.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
15. What is the authors tone (his or her attitude toward the subject?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
16. Explain the significance of the poems title.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
17. Write a paragraph in which you briefly summarize the poem.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
18. Based on your analysis, what do you think is the authors purpose in writing this
poem? That is, what universal truth does he/she want to share with his/her readers

(theme)?

19. Can you paraphrase the poem?

_______________________________________________________

20. What is the speakers tone? Which words reveal this tone? Is the poem ironic?
_____________________________________________________________

21. What heavily connotative words are used? What words have unusual or special meanings? Are
any words or phrases repeated? If so, why? Which words do you need to look up?

22. What images does the poet use? How do the images relate to one another? Do these images
form a unified pattern (a motif) throughout the poem?
_______________________________________________________________

23. What figures of speech are used? How do they contribute to the tone and meaning of the poem?
_______________________________________________________________

24. Are there any symbols? What do they mean? Are they universal symbols or do they arise from
the context of this poem?
_______________________________________________________________

25. What is the theme (the central idea) of this poem? Can you state it in a single sentence?
_____________________________________________________________

26. How important is the role of sound effects, such as rhyme and rhythm? How do they affect tone
and meaning?
_______________________________________________________________

27. How important is the contribution of form, such as rhyme scheme and line arrangement? How
does form influence the overall effect of the poem?
_______________________________________________________________