Introduction to Poetry
1) Read over each of the following quotations and respond to one of them in a
paragraph or two (Do you agree or disagree with the quotation? What do you
think it means? How does it relate to your experiences with poetry?)
“The chief use of the “meaning” of a poem in the ordinary sense, may be...to
satisfy one habit of the reader, to keep his mind diverted and quiet, while the
poem does its work upon him.” - T.S. Eliot
“Poetry is nothing less than the most perfect speech of man, that in which he
comes nearest to be able to utter the truth...” - Matthew Arnold
“The poet becomes an expert packer of suitcases”—Sylvia Plath
“The poet can make every word he writes draw blood”--Walt Whitman
“A poem is a small machine made out of words.”--William Carlos Williams
2) In order to talk about poetry, we do need to have a common understanding of
certain poetic terms. Write down a definition for each of the following terms. If
you don’t know them, look them up.
a) Alliteration
g) Personification
b) Assonance
h) Repetition
c) Imagery
i) Rhyme
d) Metaphor
j) Rhyme scheme
e) Meter
k) Simile
f) Onomatopoeia
l) Stanza
3) Read the poem, “This Is A Photograph of Me” by Margaret Atwood. After you
have read, complete a double entry journal analysis of the poem (see sample
analysis provided). Consider using some of the following guiding questions in
your analysis:
•Who is the speaker in the poem? Are the speaker and the poet one and the
same? Is there more than one speaker?
•Is the poet using an identifiable persona as the speaker (e.g., the voice of an
elderly person, a young child etc.)?
•To whom, if anyone, is the poem being addressed? How does the intended
audience for the poem affect how we understand it?
•What is the dominant tone? Can you identify the poet’s attitude towards the
subject matter (ironic, amused, judgmental, ecstatic) or towards the audience
(respectful, sarcastic, charming)?
•Can you identify the subject matter? Is there an identifiable plot? Is an event or
occasion being described? Is the poem set in any particular time or place?
•Does the poem make sense on a literal level? What parts don’t make any
sense?
•Does the poet make generalizations? If so, do these seem true only in the
context of the poem?
•Do any words or phrases stand out? Has the poet used diction to good effect?
•Are there appeals to the senses in the poem? Are there image patterns or
motifs? Are there symbols and/or allusions? What connections can you make
between the poetry and other themes or ideas under consideration in this
course?
•What is your response to the poem? What mood does the poet create in you as
you read the poem? Do you think this is how the poet intended you to feel?
What sorts of personal responses does the poem evoke in you? Has the poem
given you any fresh ideas or perspectives about the subject matter?
This is A Photograph of Me
Margaret Atwood
It was taken some time ago.
At first it seems to be
a smeared
print: blurred lines and grey flecks
blended with the paper;
then, as you scan
it, you see in the left-hand corner
a thing that is like a branch: part of a tree
(balsam or spruce) emerging
and, to the right, halfway up
what ought to be a gentle
slope, a small frame house.
In the background there is a lake,
and beyond that, some low hills.
(The photograph was taken
the day after I drowned.
I am in the lake, in the center
of the picture, just under the surface.
It is difficult to say where
precisely, or to say
how large or small I am:
the effect of water
on light is a distortion
but if you look long enough,
eventually
you will be able to see me.)