Introduction to Poetry

Introduction to Poetry

What is Poetry? • A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world, and stop it going to sleep. • Salman Rushdie • Poetry is life distilled. • Gwendolyn Brooks Poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese. G.K. Chesterton • Poetry is the rhythmical creation of beauty in words. Edgar Allan Poe Poetry is the language in which man explores his own amazement. Christopher Fry • Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words. Robert Frost • We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. • Dead Poet's Society • Poetry is truth in its Sunday clothes. • Joseph Roux Sir, I admit to your general rule that every poet is a fool. But you yourself may serve to show it that not every fool is a poet. Alexander Pope • I've written some poetry I don't understand myself. • Carl Sandburg

And in the end, the poem is not a thing we see - it is, rather, a light by which we may see - and what we see is life. • Robert Penn Warren

Journey of the Magi T.S. Eliot “A cold coming we had of it, Just the worst time of the year For the journey, and such a long journey: The ways deep and the weather sharp, The very dead of winter.‘ And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory, Lying down in the melting snow. There were times we regretted The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces, And the silken girls bringing sherbet. Then the camel men cursing and grumbling And running away, and wanting their liquor and women, And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters, And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly And the villages dirty and charging high prices: A hard time we had of it. At the end we preferred to travel all night, Sleeping in snatches, With the voices singing in our ears, saying That this was all folly. '

Musee des Beaux Arts W.H. Auden About suffering they were never wrong,The old Masters: how well they understoodIts human position: how it takes placeWhile someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along;How, when the aged are reverently, passionately waitingFor the miraculous birth, there always must beChildren who did not specially want it to happen, skatingOn a pond at the edge of the wood:They never forgotThat even the dreadful martyrdom must run its courseAnyhow in a corner, some untidy spotWhere the dogs go on with their doggy life and the torturer's horseScratches its innocent behind on a tree.

Yeah, yeah, yeah…So, now what? TP-CASTT A method for the madness!!

STEP ONE: ANALYZE THE TITLE DON’T read the poem! Only read the title! What do you think the poem will be about? Pretty simple, huh?

STEP TWO: PARAPHRASE Write the poem in your own words. Keep it “real,” don’t add or subtract. Think: Sparknotes. Use the dictionary!

Paraphrase from William Blake’s“Songs of Innocence and Experience” The Lamb Little Lamb who made thee Dost thou know who made thee Gave thee life & bid thee feed. By the stream & o’er the mead; Gave thee clothing of delight, Softest clothing wooly bright; Gave thee such a tender voice, Making all the vales rejoice! Little Lamb who made thee Dost thou know who made thee Little Lamb I’ll tell thee, Little Lamb I’ll tell thee! He is called by thy name, For he calls himself a Lamb: He is meek & he is mild, He became a little child: I a child & thou a lamb, We are called by his name. Little Lamb God bless thee. Little Lamb God bless thee. The poem begins with the question, “Little Lamb, who made thee?” The speaker, a child, asks the lamb about its origins: how it came into being, how it acquired its particular manner of feeding, its “clothing” of wool, its “tender voice.” In the next stanza, the speaker attempts a riddling answer to his own question: the lamb was made by one who “calls himself a Lamb,” one who resembles in his gentleness both the child and the lamb. The poem ends with the child bestowing a blessing on the lamb.

STEP 3: CONNOTATION A little trickier but do-able!!

ESPECIALLY WITH THE RIGHT TOOLS!!

CONNOTATION (Implied Meaning) vs. DENOTATION (Dictionary Definition)

IMAGERY …the use of vivid description, usually rich in sensory words, to create pictures, or images, in the reader's mind… Visual An oak treeA roseA sail boatA buttonA computer Kinesthetic: touch, temperature, movement, emotion Touch Standing barefoot on a sandy beachRunning your fingertips on satin fabricHolding a smooth pebble Gustatory SugarBananasSaltLemonToothpaste Feelings AngerGrief HappinessHunger Thirst Fatigue Nausea Auditory The wind blowing through the treesThe ring on your telephoneThe sound of your computer keyboardScales played on a guitarWater lapping on a lake shore Temperature:Sunlight falling over your armHolding an ice cubeStepping into a warm bath Movement SwimmingRunning on grassThrowing a ball Olfactory Gas fumesNewly baked breadChlorineNew mown grassFreshly brewed coffee

Figurative Language: words or phrases that depart from everyday literal language for the sake of comparison, emphasis, clarity, or freshness… Comparisons Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Apostrophe, Allusion, Symbolism Ambiguities Hyperbole, Irony, Oxymoron, Paradox, Pun, Idiom

Comparisons Simile: Two unlike things compared using “like” or “as,” such as “you’re as cuddly as a cactus, you’re as charming as an eel.” (Dr. Seuss) Metaphor: Two unlike things compared directly, such as “My heart’s a stereo.” (Gym Class Heroes) Personification : A type of metaphor in which distinct human qualities, e.g., honesty, emotion, volition, etc., are attributed to an animal, object or idea, such as “Hip Hop just died this morning and she’s dead.” (Nas) OR “We sang dirges in the dark, the day the music died.” (Don McLean) Apostrophe: Addressing some abstract idea as if it were animate, such as “Hello darkness, my old friend, I’ve come to talk with you again…” (Paul Simon) Allusion: Referring to persons, places, or things from history or previous literature , such as “A love struck Romeo sings the streets a serenade, laying everybody low with the love song that he made.” (Dire Straits)

SYMBOLISM The use of one object to represent or suggest another object or an idea. natural symbols - symbols recognized as standing for something in particular even by people from different cultures. (rain = fertility or renewal; forest=mental darkness or chaos; mountain=stability) conventional symbols - symbols which people have agreed to accept as standing for something other than themselves (cross = Christianity; rose = love) I look inside myself and see my heart is black I see my red door and it has been painted black Maybe then I’ll fade away and not have to face the facts It’s not easy facing up when your whole world is black (Rolling Stones)

Ambiguities Idiom: an expression that cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements. Irony: saying the opposite of what is true or expected Hyperbole: extreme exaggerations to create emphasis or effect Oxymoron: a combination of contradictory or incongruous words (usually two) Paradox: A seemingly contradictory, or absurd, statement which may be well-founded or true Pun: A play on words based on the similarity of sound between two words with different meanings • They have yarns • Of a skyscraper so tall they had to put hinges • On the two top stories so to let the moon go by… • Carl Sandburg Butterflies in my stomach War is kind. Stephen Crane Fiend Angelical William Shakespeare Energizer Bunny arrested -- charged with battery. Corny Web Site “Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” C.S. Lewis

STEP FOUR: ANALYZE THE ATTITUDE a.k.a. TONE You Fool! Is the poem picking a fight or just joking around? Who is the speaker? What is the Speaker’s attitude toward the subject, other characters, toward him/herself? What are the attitudes of other characters? What is the poet’s attitude toward the subject, speaker, or other characters?

DICTION = Vocabulary + Syntax The words the poet chooses plus the patterns the poet uses to put them together. “Madam, allow me an instant. You are aware that my plan in bringing up these girls is not to accustom them to habits of luxury and indulgence but to render them hardy, patient, self-denying.” Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte Now, you wait just a minute! I’m the boss around here, I know my own business and I am not going to have a couple spoiled brats running around. They are going to have to grow up!

Melodic Devices (Sound Effects) Alliteration: the repetition of speech sounds, such as: Peter Piper picked, apt alliteration’s artful aid The moan of doves in immemorial elms, and murmuring of innumerable bees Onomatopoeia: hiss, boom, bang, zoom, etc. Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds (lake, fake) Consonance: repetition of consonant sounds (bill, burn, ball, born) Rhyme: masculine, feminine, triple, sight, slant, identical, end, internal (Whew!) Rhythm: pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables and pauses; the “beat” of the poem

FORM Star, if you are a love compassionate, you will walk with us this year. We face a glacial distance who are here huddled at your feet. WilliamBurford Star, If you are A love compassionate, You will walk with us this year. We face a glacial distance who are here Huddl’d At your feet. William Burford

MORE ON FORM… Verse: single line of poetry Regular verse: rhyme scheme and specific pattern of verses Blank verse: unrhymed verses with the same meter, usually iambic Free verse: no rhyme scheme, no meter, Stanzas: groupings of single lines of poetry couplet (2), quatrain (4), sestet (6), octet (8) Types of poetry dependent on form: Haiku, Sonnet, Concrete, Limerick The form of the poem can often indicate, or explain, the poet’s attitude toward the subject.

Attitude for All! • Positive Tone/Attitude Words • Amiable Consoling Friendly Playful • Amused Content Happy Pleasant • Appreciative Dreamy Hopeful Proud • Authoritative Ecstatic Impassioned Relaxed • Benevolent Elated Jovial Reverent • Brave Elevated Joyful Romantic • Calm Encouraging Jubilant Soothing • Cheerful Energetic Lighthearted Surprised • Cheery Enthusiastic Loving Sweet • Compassionate Excited Optimistic Sympathetic • Complimentary Exuberant Passionate Vibrant • Confident Fanciful Peaceful Whimsical Negative Tone/Attitude Words Accusing Choleric Furious Quarrelsome Aggravated Coarse Harsh Shameful Agitated Cold Haughty Smooth Angry Condemnatory Hateful Snooty Apathetic Condescending Hurtful Superficial Arrogant Contradictory Indignant Surly Artificial Critical Inflammatory Testy Audacious Desperate Insulting Threatening Belligerent Disappointed Irritated Tired Bitter Disgruntled Manipulative Uninterested Boring Disgusted Obnoxious Wrathful Brash Disinterested Outraged Childish Facetious Passive

Sorrow-Fear-Worry Tone/Attitude Words Aggravated Embarrassed Morose Resigned Agitated Fearful Mournful Sad Anxious Foreboding Nervous Serious Apologetic Gloomy Numb Sober Apprehensive Grave Ominous Solemn Concerned Hollow Paranoid Somber Confused Hopeless Pessimistic Staid Dejected Horrific Pitiful Upset Depressed Horror Poignant Despairing Melancholy Regretful Disturbed Miserable Remorseful Neutral Tone/Attitude Words Admonitory Dramatic Intimae Questioning Allusive Earnest Judgmental Reflective Apathetic Expectant Learned Reminiscent Authoritative Factual Loud Resigned Baffled Fervent Lyrical Restrained Callous Formal Matter-of-fact Seductive Candid Forthright Meditative Sentimental Ceremonial Frivolous Nostalgic Serious Clinical Haughty Objective Shocking Consoling Histrionic Obsequious Sincere Contemplative Humble Patriotic Unemotional Conventional Incredulous Persuasive Urgent Detached Informative Pleading Vexed Didactic Inquisitive Pretentious Wistful Disbelieving Instructive Provocative Zealous Humor-Irony-Sarcasm Tone/Attitude Words Amused Droll Mock-heroic Sardonic Bantering Facetious Mocking Satiric Bitter Flippant Mock-serious Scornful Caustic Giddy Patronizing Sharp Comical Humorous Pompous Silly Condescending Insolent Quizzical Taunting Contemptuous Ironic Ribald Teasing Critical Irreverent Ridiculing Whimsical Cynical Joking Sad Wry Disdainful Malicious Sarcastic

STEP FIVE: Look for SHIFT: Imagery Tone Diction Form Sound Speaker (anything that changes)

STEP SIX: ANALYZE THE TITLE YES, DO IT AGAIN! You’ve got this! After Steps 1-5, the title should have a whole new meaning and/or significance!

STEP SEVEN: DETERMINE THEME • Ask yourself: • What insight do all the other elements work together to convey? What is the poet trying to say? What are the concrete and abstract subjects • of the poem? • Theme is not the same as a “moral.” • Theme explains the whole poem. • Theme is a generalization about a concept such as life, death, art, love, birth, innocence, etc.

Introduction to Poetry