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Quick Reference Guide: How to Read and Annotate aPoem

1. Author/ContextWho is the author of the poem? What do we know about him/her and thetime/period in which s/he lived? What kind of poetry does he/she tend towrite?

2. Initial Read-throughBegin by doing an initial read-through of the poem for a generalunderstanding, and make a note of the overall topic ortheme (onesentence maximum). As you go through the following steps, return to yourdescription of the theme and revise it to be more specific.

3. TitleWhat is the title of the poem, and what is its significance? What does thattell us about the topic?

4. ParaphraseDevelop an overall paraphrase of the poem. What is the poem generallyabout? (this may or may not be revealed in the title). What is the plot what happens?

5. Speaker/Poetic VoiceWho is the speaker? What do we know about him or her based on thepoem? What is the occasion for this poem? Why is the poet writing thispoem at this time?

6. AudienceWho is the intended audience of this poem? What is the authors attitudetoward the reader? What assumptions are being made about the reader?

7. DictionAs you read, mark any words or phrases that stand out to you. Look up anyunfamiliar vocabulary (www.oed.com). What kinds of words is the poetchoosing? What is their denotation and connotation? Are the wordsconcrete or abstract? Is the poet using a higher poetic diction orattempting to mimic common speech? Why?

8. ToneWhat is the tone of the poem? How is that tone constructed through thediction and other devices? Is the poem serious? Ironic? Contemplative?How else would you describe it?

9. Use of Figurative Language and Rhetorical DevicesLook for any and all of the following: metaphor, simile, personification,metonymy, synecdoche, alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia, irony,

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hyperbole, allusion, pun, paradox, oxymoron, litotes, allegory, symbolism.

10. AllusionsNote any allusions. What is the poem alluding to and why? (Other poems,literature, current or historical events, Greek or Roman mythology, etc)

11. Structure and Rhyme

a) Scan and note the meter and rhythm of the poem.b) Identify the form of the poem. Is it an established, structured form (i.e.sonnet, rhyming couplets, etc)?

c) Determine the meter (iambic, tetrameter, alexandrines, etc).d) What is the rhyme scheme (abba, cdecde, etc)?e) Are there any deviations from these patterns?f) If so, are these deviations in form linked to the context of whats

happening in the poem?

12. PunctuationHow does the poet use punctuation? What punctuation appears frequently

in the poem?

13. ImageryWhat kinds of images (or details from the other 4 senses) appear in thepoem? How do they affect the tone and meaning?

14. SyntaxHow are the sentences constructed (where are the nouns and verbs)? Dothey sound like ordinary language? Are they inverted syntactically? Howlong are the sentences? Where do they begin and end? Are thereinstances of enjambment?

15. What strikes you?Make a brief note about what strikes you (is it the sound or the sense?) Whyis this moment important in the poem?

16. RereadReread the poem and divide it into sections that seem natural to it, eitherthematically or structurally. Is there a specific turn (volta) in the poem?Where?

17. Self-Consciousness

Be especially aware of ways in which the poem seems to be self-conscious,that is, aware of its own form as a poem; what is the status of poetry withinthe poem? What does it mean for this message to be conveyed in verseform?

18. Meaning and ValuesHow does each of the above elements affect the meaning of the poem?What is the poet trying to say? Does he/she succeed? What is the overalleffect of the poem?