1. What Is the Genre, Or Form, of the Poem?

Poem Checklist

1. What is the genre, or form, of the poem?

2. Who is speaking in the poem? What tone does the poem have? Who is the audience?

3. What is the argument, thesis, or subject of the poem? How are the ideas structured?

4. What is the structure of the poem? How many stanzas?

5. How does the poem use imagery? Which senses do the images invoke (visual, auditory, gustatory, tactile, olfactory, or kinesthetic)? Is there a pattern? On which senses does the poet seem to focus?

6. Are there key statements, conflicts or shifts in the poem that appear to be central to its meaning? How do they contribute?

7. Are there central symbols, repetitions, actions, motifs?

8. How does the sound of the poetry contribute to its meaning? Is there rhyme, meter, alliteration, repetition, etc?

9. Examine the use of diction. Are there words with strong connotations? What do they suggest?

10. Examine the use of syntax. Are they any unusual sentence structures: inversions or parallel structure etc.? What purpose do they serve?

11. Examine the use of figurative language (simile, metaphor, personification). What purpose do the comparisons serve?

12. What is the central theme of the poem?

Poem Checklist

1. What is the genre, or form, of the poem?

2. Who is speaking in the poem? What tone does the poem have? Who is the audience?

3. What is the argument, thesis, or subject of the poem? How are the ideas structured?

4. What is the structure of the poem? How many stanzas?

5. How does the poem use imagery? Which senses do the images invoke (visual, auditory, gustatory, tactile, olfactory, or kinesthetic)? Is there a pattern? On which senses does the poet seem to focus?

6. Are there key statements, conflicts, or shifts in the poem that appear to be central to its meaning? How do they contribute?

7. Are there central symbols, repetitions, actions, motifs?

8. How does the sound of the poetry contribute to its meaning? Is there rhyme, meter, alliteration, repetition, etc?

9. Examine the use of diction. Are there words with strong connotations? What do they suggest?

10. Examine the use of syntax. Are they any unusual sentence structures: inversions or parallel structure etc.? What purpose do they serve?

11. Examine the use of figurative language (simile, metaphor, personification). What purpose do the comparisons serve?

12. What is the central theme of the poem?