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People are sometimes intimidated by poetry because they do not understand the meaning of a particular poem. Students panic when asked to write a paper analyzing a poem, saying they do not know where to begin. We realize that poetry is a wonderful literary form when we simply resolve to appreciate it for what it is. Here is a good model to follow for analyzing and explicating poetry.

First, rewrite the poem by paraphrasing it in your own words; write what you think it means. Do each stanza separately. This leads you toward beginning to understanding the poet's intended meaning.

Then, look for any dialogue. What is the poem saying? Are there any questions being asked or posed? Who is speaking? Can you tell the age or sex of the speaker? What was the poet's life like at the time the poem was written? For example, John Keats is said to have written "To Autumn," a poem about the harvest and cyclical nature of life, at a time when his own death was near. What is the imagery in the poem? What is the mood? How about the tone of the poem? Is it sad, happy, melancholy, angry, etc.? What are the controlling principles in the poem? Does the ending of the poem take the reader back to the beginning?

Next, ask yourself the following questions:

• Is there any alliteration? Assonance? Metaphor? Simile? Symbolism?
• What kind of speech form is it?
• What is the content of the poem?
• Does the poem sound harsh (cacophony)? Is it melodic (euphony)?
• Is the poem relevant to the world today?
• What is the rhyme scheme (abab, cdcd, and so on)? Is it free or blank verse?
• Is it didactic (states a message; teaches knowledge)? Is it a narrative poem (tells a story)? Is it a dramatic monologue (one speaker, almost written as a speech)?
• Does it contain irony?
• Check the diction - are the words concrete or abstract? Does it have a colloquial style (casual, informal)?
• Does it contain hyperbole (overstatement)? Does it contain apostrophe (addresses something invisible)?
• Does it contain paradox (self-contradicting)? Any onomatopoeia (representing sounds like whoosh, ping)?
• What is the main topic or subject of the poem?

Answering all of these questions will give you a good understanding of the poem. You will also have the basis for a wealth of information for analyzing and explicating a poem.