People have moods, and Poems have moods…
Can you find the Mood in a poem?
To find the mood, find the feelings.
LEQ: How does the author’s use of word choice and imagery create the mood in a
text?
Objective:. In this lesson you will learn how to identify the mood of a poem by
analyzing the words an author uses.
Key Words:
Literary Term and definition:
1. Mood:_________________________________________________________________________________
2. Imagery:_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Review terms:
First FOCUS PASSAGE: “Abandoned Farmhouse” by Ted Kooser
First Steps to finding mood in a poem:
1. Read the poem aloud. Listen for the way that the poet uses words.
2. Read the poem a second time. Look for the words that convey strong feelings.
Highlight the “strong feeling” words.
3. Ask yourself, what kind of effect do these words have? How do these words make
me feel?
Side note: As your knowledge of vocabulary words increases, your ability o
articulate the precise mood of a poem will also increase.
Other Steps to finding Mood in a Poem:
LEQ: How does an author create use word choice in the description of setting and
characters to create mood?
Steps of Analysis*:
1. Read the poem. Then, ask, how does the author describe characters or setting in
this poem? Identify words the author uses to describe the characters and setting.
Underline them with a pencil.
2. Read the poem a second time. Pay attention to the author’s use of words that
make you feel something. Highlight the words that convey feeling or emotion.
3. Read the text a third time, paying attention to the highlighted words. Ask: “What
feeling or atmosphere do these words suggest?”
4. Use this analysis (your answer to the question) to determine the mood of the
poem. Jot down your answer.
*note: analysis is a process of asking questions to discover ideas and draw
conclusions; with poetry, you need to ask questions about the text that lead you to
discovering the author’s meaning.