Bellwork
November 28, 2012
• Close your eyes for a minute and imagine
you are skydiving. Write about the
physical sensations and the thoughts you
have. Use as many descriptive words as
possible.
Leah ..the little puppy
Poetry Analysis Using TPSFASTT
Getting Started…
• This is a process to help you organize your
analysis of poetry.
• You have already learned the vocabulary,
now it’s time to put it into practice!
• Together, we are going to analyze
“Dreams” using TPFASTT.
• You will be given a note sheet to use as we
analyze the poems.
Add your analysis of “Dreams” to
the TPFASTT sheet as we go through
each slide
T is for TITLE
• Analyze the title first.
• What do you predict this poem will be
about?
• Write down your predictions.
• We will reflect on the title again after we
have read the poem.
• The next step is often omitted, but it is the
most important!!!!
READ THE POEM!!!!
Dreams
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
-Langston Hughes
P is for PARAPHRASE
• Paraphrasing is
putting something in
your own words.
• After reading the
poem, rewrite it in
your own words.
• This may be three
sentences or a page,
depending on the
particular poem.
S is for Speaker
• The speaker of the poem is
different from the Poet.
• Answer the question: “Who is
speaking in this poem?”
• The choice of speaker should
be supported by evidence from
the poem.
• It can be someone specific (
King Arthur) or someone
general ( a dragon/ a wise old
man).
F is for Figurative Language
• Analyze the figures of
speech and sound
effects of the poem.
• Look for literary
devices such as
imagery, symbolism,
metaphor, simile,
personification, and
effects of sound
(alliteration, rhyme,
etc.).
Bellwork November 29th:
You are staying with your grandparents on
vacation and you wander up to the attic one
day. You find an old worn out trunk that has
been pushed in a corner of the room. It is
ornately decorated with spirals and loops
carved into the wood. You open the trunk
and find….
Write about what you find in 7-10 sentences.
A is for ATTITUDE
• Tone is the attitude of
the speaker toward the
subject of the poem. Use
adjectives to describe
tone.
• Ex: desperate, happy,
judgmental, thoughtful,
depressed, etc.
• You must have evidence
to support your choice.
S is for SHIFT
• If there is a change
in…
– Time
– Tone
– Speaker
This should always
be noted as this
will also affect the
meaning.
Look for: shift words
(but, yet, then, etc.)
and punctuation
T is for TITLE (again)
• At this time, you should reconsider the
title.
• Were you right in your predictions?
• What other meanings might the title have
in light of your analysis?
• Next, the biggie….
T is for THEME
• Theme is the general insight into life
conveyed by the author through his/her
work.
• It does not make a judgment.
example: “Don’t do drugs” is not a theme.
• It merely states something that is true to
life and the human condition.
• First list what the poem is about, then
determine what the poet is saying about the
subject.
How do I find the THEME?
• Look at the other
parts of TPSFASTT.
• What insight are all of
these working
together to convey?
• What is the poet
trying to say about
life?
Eadms Test
• We are taking this test to gauge our current
ability to pass the CAHSEE. Do your best
on this exam to give me, your tenth grade
teacher team, and Mrs. Hunter and idea of
what needs to be reviewed for you to pass
the exam next semester.
Homework
• TPSFASST ( on a lined sheet of paper)
“Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost.
• Due Tomorrow.
Poetry Discovery Discussion
• Take out your homework so we can
discuss it.