“Introduction to Poetry”
by Billy Collins
I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide
or press an ear against its hive.
I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,
or walk inside the poem’s room
and feel the walls for a light switch.
I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author’s name on the shore.
But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.
they begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.
Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
In the first line, the speaker says, “I ask them to take a poem.” Who do you
suppose “them” is? Who do you suppose the speaker is?
How does the speaker describe the poem? What are some figures of
speech that he uses and images that he creates? (Select one interesting
description, write it down, and explain what you think it suggests about
the poem.)
In the first line of the sixth stanza (line twelve), the speaker says, “But all
they want to do.” Who do you suppose “they” is? According to the
speaker, what do “they” want to do to the poem?
What do you think the speaker’s attitude toward the poem is? Why? What
do you think the speaker’s attitude toward “them” and “they” is? Why?
Why do you think we read and write poetry? Is poetry important in our
lives?
*Please answer these questions in complete sentences on a separate piece of
paper. Thank you!
Question: Why do we read and write poetry?
Answer: “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”
(John Keating, played by Robin Williams, in Dead
Poets Society, 1989).
“Understanding Poetry” from Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmayC2AdkN
w&feature=related
Mining a Poem for
Meaning
Step #1: As you read the poem, circle
unfamiliar and/or important words,
look up the meaning of words you
don’t know, and write the definition
of the words in the margin.
Step #2: Locate examples of poetic
devices (figurative language and
musical devices) and label them
according to a color-code key that you
create. Look for figurative language
(e.g., hyperbole, imagery, metaphor,
personification, simile, and symbolism)
and musical devices (e.g., alliteration,
assonance, consonance, meter,
onomatopoeia, parallelism, and
rhyme).
Step #3: Analyze each stanza or small
parts of the poem. Write your
observations and interpretations in
the margin next to the stanza or the
part of the poem you analyze.
Consider how diction and poetic
devices affect mood, tone, and theme.
Step #4: Summarize what you have
discovered about the meaning of the
poem.
Yes, poetry mining is hard
work, but my friends and I
have found many riches
while mining poems. Join
us and see what you can
find!
Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles!
Nothing can bring you peace but yourself!
(Ralph Waldo Emerson)
The invariable mark of wisdom is to see
the miraculous in the common!
(Ralph Waldo Emerson)
I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life!
(Henry David Thoreau)
Close Reading
• Consider the small details and the larger ideas those
detail evoke or suggest!
• Analyze not only what a piece of literature means but
also how that meaning is developed and expressed!
• Begin with the larger ideas and use the smaller
details to support your interpretations!
• Make observations and ask questions that will lead
to interpretations!
• Read several times!
Things to remember when analyzing a poem . . .
•
•
•
•
•
Summary is telling succinctly.
Paraphrasing is telling word for word.
Analyzing is explaining and interpreting.
Analyze, don’t just summarize and paraphrase.
Use summarizing and paraphrasing only to
support your analysis.
• Analyze how style, tone, and theme interrelate.
In other words, analyze how style helps to
express tone and theme.
Walt Whitman
When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in
columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to Sounds like a student
in a university lecture
add, divide, and measure them,
hall.
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he
lectured with much applause in the lecture
room,
Why “unaccountable” ?
How soon unaccountable I became tired and
Does he physically leave,
sick,
or is he daydreaming?
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by
myself,
In the mystical moist night air, and from time to
time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.
Walt Whitman
Initial interest
followed by a
sense of
inactivity
created by word
choice (e.g.,
heard and
sitting), parallel
structure (like
rows), and the
use of passive
voice (e.g.,
“were ranged”
and “was
shown”).
Notice the
shift in diction
and syntax ,
which signals a
shift in tone,
which possibly
affects
meaning!
Color Code
Diction (Bold)
Passive Voice (Bold)
Active Voice (Bold)
1st Person (Bold)
3rd Person (Bold)
Alliteration (Bold)
Parallelism (Bold)
When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged
in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams,
to add, divide, and measure them,
of imprisonment; a
When I sitting heard the astronomer where Sense
feeling of being overwhelmed
he lectured with much applause in the
lecture room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired
and sick,
Active voice (e.g.,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by “I wander’d” and
“look’d”)
myself,
In the mystical moist night air, and from time
to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars. Sense of freedom and wonder
This poem places an emphasis on learning through personal experience and taking time to think and reflect in “perfect
silence.” While the first stanza emphasizes passive learning, the second stanza emphasizes active leaning. It also has a
romantic tone, emphasizing intuition and emotion over reason and logic—what can be perceived emotionally through
instinct and intuition (the sixth senses) rather than what can be perceived physically through the five senses. The
speaker’s mind definitely appears to have evolved from “third-rate” to “first-rate”!
Writing an Effective Thesis Statement
• Authors use literary devices to establish tone
and express theme.
• What literary devices are being used to establish
tone and express theme?
• How are these literary devices being used to
establish tone and express theme?
• Thesis Patter: Topic (Title and Author) + “Sexy”
Adjective + Literary Device (2 or 3) + Strong
Action Verb + Shifts in Tone + Theme.
• Let’s take a look!
Thesis Statements
• In “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer,” Walt
Whitman uses parallel structure and a shifting voice.
• In “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer,” Walt
Whitman uses parallel structure and a shifting voice
to illustrate the importance of active learning and
the power of intuition.
• In “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer,” Walt
Whitman uses parallel structure and a shifting voice
to illustrate the importance of active learning and
the power of intuition, proving that the truly
enlightened mind is one that seeks its own answers.
“I Hear America Singing”
by Walt Whitman
I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear,
Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong,
The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work,
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat, the deckhand singing on the
steamboat deck,
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench, the hatter singing as he stands,
The wood-cutter’s song, the plowboy’s on his way in the morning, or at noon
intermission or at sundown,
The delicious singing of the mother, or of the young wife at work, or of the girl
sewing or washing,
Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else,
The day what belongs to the day—at night the party of young fellows, robust,
friendly,
Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs.
Whitman writes in free verse, which
illustrates the freedom and liberty
associated with the American
experience.
One who works with stone or brick
“I Hear America Singing”
by Walt Whitman
Diverse; different
Whitman uses musical devices such
as alliteration and parallelism to
make his poem “melodious,” thus
giving it a sense of unity despite its
free-verse style.
Carefree, amiable
I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear,
Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong,
The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work,
5 The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat, the deckhand singing on the
steamboat deck,
Each
person
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench, the hatter singing as he stands,
sings
The wood-cutter’s song, the plowboy’s on his way in the morning, or at noon
his own
intermission or at sundown,
unique
The delicious singing of the mother, or of the young wife at work, or of the girl
song.
sewing or washing,
Strong, healthy, vigorous
Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else,
10 The day what belongs to the day—at night the party of young fellows, robust,
friendly,
Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs.
Color Code
Alliteration (Bold)
Parallelism (Bold)
Vocabulary (Bold)
At night, people come together to continue singing their songs,
possibly to set aside differences.
Summary
Whitman uses an extended metaphor to compare America to a chorus. While each
person—like each singer in a chorus—sings his or her own song, a beautiful melody is
created in the end. In other words, each person contributes something unique to make
America strong and keep America unified.
“I, Too, Sing America”
by Langston Hughes
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.
Besides,
They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed—
I, too, am America.
Now it’s your turn!
• Write a poem titled “I Hear Cary-Grove Singing.” Use
Whitman’s poem and Hughes’ poem as examples. If you
prefer, you can write a song.
• Your poem or song needs to be at least twelve lines in
length, and it must have examples of parallelism,
alliteration, simile or metaphor, imagery, and symbolism.
• I would like you to upload your poems or songs to the class
Wiki on the appropriate page. Please illustrate your songs
or poems as well.
• Poems or songs will be shared in class on Tuesday,
September 3rd. We will have a “poetry slam” in class that
day.
The Jena Six
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?
storyId=12353776
“I sound my barbaric yawp over the rooftops of the
world” from Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLFQYbjYsso&N
R=1
Never be afraid to “sound your barbaric yawp”!
Poetry Video Links
“Carpe diem,” Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQtmGcdSDAI
“Understanding poetry,” Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmayC2AdkNw&
feature=related
“Finding your voice,” Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EdWgsTUhmI&
feature=related
“I sound my barbaric yawp over the rooftops of the
world,” Dead Poets Society @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLFQYbjYsso&N
R=1
Some other strategies for analyzing a poem . . .
• TPCAST
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Title
Paraphrase
Connotations
Attitude (tone)
Shifts in attitude (tone)
Title
Theme
• DIDLS
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Diction
Imagery
Details
Language
Syntax
• QCPEQR
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Question
Comment
Pause to reflect
Evaluate
Quotations
Recognize