American Studies Poetry Unit

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Name______

American Studies Poetry Unit

1. You are responsible for understanding and being able to applythe literary terms in this packet.All terms and poems included heremay be on the final exam.

B. There are 4 creative extension assignments throughout this packet. By the conclusion of our poetry unit, you must complete any 2 of these.

C. For each poem we study, complete the TPCASTT poetry analysisdirectly on your packet. Occasionally, I will assign the short writing assignments thatfollow as well. These will be checked for completion or sometimes collected for a grade.

T-title: The meaning of the title without reference to the poem.
P-paraphrase: Put the poem, line by line, in your own words. DO NOT READ INTO THE
POEM. At this point, only read on the surface level.
C-connotation: look for deeper meaning using figurative language and style.

• Form/structure
• Diction and syntax
• Symbolism
• Imagery
• Metaphors, similes, personification
• Rhyme scheme
• Alliteration, assonance and consonance
• Mood
• Allusions
• Punctuation

A-attitude: Look for the author’s tone. How is the speaker addressing the subject matter?
S-shifts: Look for shifts in tone, action, and rhythm. Discuss
how the shift(s) affects the poem’s meaning.
T-title: reevaluate the title as it pertains to the poem. Does the title carry a hidden meaning?
T-theme: What is the poem’s message? What is it saying about life or human nature?

LITERARY TERMS FOR POETRY

POETRY is a patterned form of verbal or written expression of ideas in concentrated, imaginative and rhythmical terms. Poetry may contain rhyme and a specific meter, but not necessarily.

FIGURES OF SPEECH

FIGURE OF SPEECH or FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE: An expression in which the words are used in a non-literal sense to develop a figure, image, mood, or theme.
ALLEGORY: a work of literature in which the elements represent abstract ideas or qualities; a work with a hidden meaning (Ex: The Crucible)
ALLUSION: a reference to some person, place or event that has literary, historical or geographical significance.
ANAPHORA: the repetition of a word to begin several lines of the same poem
APOSTROPHE: addressing someone (dead) or something (an idea), not present, as though present
DICTION: the choice of words and the force, accuracy, and distinction with which they are used (i.e. poetic, scientific, colloquial, etc.)
HYPERBOLE (OVERSTATEMENT): an exaggeration for the sake of emphasis
IMAGERY: the use of figurative languagethatappeals to the senses & creates a picture, or an auditory or tactile effect in the reader's mind
INVERSION: Reversing the order of the parts of a sentence for specific effect (Ex: “Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown”)
METAPHOR: An implied comparison between two usually unrelated things that suggests one thing is the other; a linking verb is often used to connect the ideas. In the case of an implied metaphor, no linking verb is used. (Ex: Knowledge shines light in the mind.)

TYPES OF POEMS

LYRIC: A short, non-narrative poem presenting a single speaker who expresses a state of mind or a process of thought and feeling

BALLAD: a song-like poem that tells a story through action & dialogue

EPIC: long narrative poem on a serious subject written in an elevated style, often dealing with a heroic figure

DRAMATIC MONOLOGUE: poem in which a speaker relates an event at a critical moment to other people whose presence & reactions are revealed through the speaker’s clues

ODE: usually lengthy lyric poem in praise of a person, thing, or idea; often elevated in style

SONNET: 14 line poem in iambic pentameter, with a specific rhyme scheme and structure (Italian/Petrarchan or English/Shakespearean)

SOUND IMAGERY

EUPHONY: language which is smooth, pleasant, and musical to the ear
CACOPHONY: language which is harsh, rough, and unmusical to the ear
ONOMATOPOEIA: the use of a word to represent or imitate natural sounds
ALLITERATION: the repetition of the initial letter or sound in two or more words in a line of verse
ASSONANCE: the similarity or repetition of a vowel sound in two or more words in a line of verse
FORM
STANZA: a division of a poem based on thought or form
COUPLET: two lines of verse that rhyme / PARADOX: a statement, often metaphorical, that seems to be self-contradictory but has valid meaning (“In order to have peace, you must prepare for war.”)
PERSONIFICATION: the giving of human characteristics to inanimate objects, ideas or animals
PUN: a play on words that are identical or similar but have diverse meanings
SIMILE: a direct comparison between two usually unrelated things using "like" or "as"
REPETITION: reiterating a word or phrase for rhetorical effect
REFRAIN: the repetition of one or more phrases or lines at intervals in a poem
OXYMORON: a type of paradox in which two linked words contradict each other (Ex: "jumbo shrimp" “cold fire”)
SYMBOL: a word or image that signifies something other than what is literally represented; it has both a literal and figurative meaning.
SYNTAX: the grammatical arrangement of words in a sentence (inversion and parallelism are examples of syntactical structures)
UNDERSTATEMENT: an expression that uses less force/emphasis than a situation warrants; can apply to the creation of tone as well.
RHYME
FIXED FORM or REGULAR VERSE: poetry with regular stanza form, rhythm and rhyme, often in a recognizable pattern that may indicate a particular form of verse.
FREE VERSE: lines of poetry lacking predictable rhyme or metrical patterns
END: rhyme at end of line
INTERNAL: rhyme within the line
PERFECT (TRUE): an exact rhyme (cat/bat)
IMPERFECT (APPROXIMATE): also known as “slant” (cost/boast)
METER (pattern of stress in syllables)
IAMBIC: unstressed/stressed u /
TROCHAIC: stressed/unstressed / u
ANAPESTIC: u u /
DACTYLIC: / u u
SPONDAIC: / /
PYRRHIC: u u
TONE & MOOD
DENOTATION: the literal or dictionary meaning of a word
CONNOTATION: the implied meaning; emotions or feelings associated with a word
PERSONA: the speaker in the poem (not the author) who usually reveals the tone of the poem
TONE: the speaker’s attitude toward the subject matter
MOOD: a feeling, emotional state, or disposition of mind--the effect of the author’s words on the reader.

Lesson 1: Introduction to Poetry

Pop Quiz: Read “Introduction to Poetry” then answer the questions below.

Billy Collins Introduction to Poetry

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author's name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.

Lesson 2: Diction and Connotation

In addition to literal, dictionary meanings, words often have implied, emotional meanings known as connotations. These connotations play a significant role in the search for the "right word" because they sometimes clash with a writer's intended meaning or view. Much of poetry involves the poet using connotative diction that suggests shades of meanings beyond "what the words simply say."

Connotation is the emotional resonance a word carries beyond the minimal, strict definition found in a dictionary. For instance, the words house and home both refer to a domicile, but home connotes certain singular emotional qualities and personal possession in a way that house doesn't. I might own four houses I rent to others, but I might call none of these my home, for example.

Connotation descriptors:

Favorable/positiveNeutral Unfavorable/negative

Examples:

relaxed inactive lazy

prudent timid cowardly

modest shy mousy

time-tested old out-of-date

dignified reserved stiff-necked

persevering persistent stubborn

up-to-date new newfangled

thrifty conservative miserly

self-confident proud conceited

inquisitive curious nosy

Each of the following sentences includes a pair of words with similar dictionary definitions but different connotations. One of the words is more appropriate based on the context of the sentence.

As snakes continue to grow, they (junk, shed) the protective keratinous layer on the surface of their bodies because it does not expand.

Oblivious to those around him, the father tenderly (smiled, smirked) at his newborn baby through the window of the hospital nursery.

During rush hour traffic in a metropolis, cars creep along at agonizingly slow (velocities, speeds).

Even the coolest star in the night skies is unbelievably (sultry, hot) according to astronomers.

The local newspaper's front-page story indicated that $50,000 was (stolen, pilfered) from the town's largest bank during the night.

The pack of wild horses (loped, sprinted) alongside the train at top speed for more than 200 yards.

Although many Americans purchase meat at their local grocery stores, some farmers still (butcher, execute) livestock to feed their families.

The French are (noted, notorious) for their fine food.

Apostrophe To Man by Edna St. Vincent Millay

(On reflecting that the world is ready to go to war again)

Detestable race, continue to expunge yourself, die out.

Breed faster, crowd, encroach, sing hymns, build bombing airplanes;

Make speeches, unveil statues, issue bonds, parade;

Convert again into explosives the bewildered ammonia

and the distracted cellulose;

Convert again into putrescent matter drawing flies

The hopeful bodies of the young; exhort,

Pray, pull long faces, be earnest,

be all but overcome, be photographed;

Confer, perfect your formulae, commercialize

Bacteria harmful to human tissue,

Put death on the market;

Breed, crowd, encroach,

expand, expunge yourself, die out,

Homo called sapiens.

Assignment: How do diction (word choice) and connotationcontribute to the tone and theme of this poem?

Lesson 3: Free Verse

Free verse refers to lines of poetry that may havea planned structure and even a controlled rhythm but lackpredictable rhyme or metrical patterns.

What Were They Like? by Denise Levertov

Did the people of Viet Nam
use lanterns of stone?
Did they hold ceremonies
to reverence the opening of buds?
Were they inclined to quiet laughter?
Did they use bone and ivory,
jade and silver, for ornament?
Had they an epic poem?
Did they distinguish between speech and singing?
Sir, their light hearts turned to stone.
It is not remembered whether in gardens
stone gardens illumined pleasant ways.
Perhaps they gathered once to delight in blossom,
but after their children were killed
there were no more buds.
Sir, laughter is bitter to the burned mouth.
A dream ago, perhaps. Ornament is for joy.
All the bones were charred.
it is not remembered. Remember,
most were peasants; their life
was in rice and bamboo.
When peaceful clouds were reflected in the paddies
and the water buffalo stepped surely along terraces,
maybe fathers told their sons old tales.
When bombs smashed those mirrors
there was time only to scream.
There is an echo yet
of their speech which was like a song.
It was reported their singing resembled
the flight of moths in moonlight.
Who can say? It is silent now.

Assignment: While this poem would be categorized as free verse, it has a definite structure that is significant in unifying the poem. Examine this form, and analyze how it contributes to the overall meaning of the poem?

Lesson 4: Imagery

Imagery is the use of figurative language to represent objects, actions and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our physical senses.Imagery needs the aid of figures of speech like simile, metaphor, personification, onomatopoeia etc. in order to appeal to the senses.

Facing It by Yusef Komunyakaa

My black face fades,
hiding inside the black granite.
I said I wouldn't,
dammit: No tears.
I'm stone. I'm flesh.
My clouded reflection eyes me
like a bird of prey, the profile of night
slanted against morning. I turn
this way--the stone lets me go.
I turn that way--I'm inside
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
again, depending on the light
to make a difference.
I go down the 58,022 names,
half-expecting to find
my own in letters like smoke.
I touch the name Andrew Johnson;
I see the booby trap's white flash.
Names shimmer on a woman's blouse
but when she walks away
the names stay on the wall.
Brushstrokes flash, a red bird's
wings cutting across my stare.
The sky. A plane in the sky.
A white vet's image floats
closer to me, then his pale eyes
look through mine. I'm a window.
He's lost his right arm
inside the stone. In the black mirror
a woman's trying to erase names:
No, she's brushing a boy's hair.

Oral reading by author:

Assignment: Examine the ways in which the poet’s imagery reveals his feelings about visiting the Vietnam War memorial.

Lesson 5: Auditory Imagery

The Sound of Night by Maxine Kumin

And now the dark comes on,

all full of chitter noise.

Birds huggermugger crowd the trees,

the air thick with their vesper cries,

and bats, snub seven-pointed kites,

skitter across the lake, swing out,

squeak, chirp, dip, and skim on skates

of air, and the fat frogs wake and prink

wide-lipped, noisy as ducks, drunk

on the boozy black, gloating chink-chunk.

And now on the narrow beach

we defend ourselves from dark.

The cooking done, we build our firework

bright and hot and less for outlook

than for magic, and lie in our blankets

while night knickers around us. Crickets

chorus hallelujahs; paws, quiet

and quick as raindrops, play on the stones

expertly soft, run past and are gone;

fish pulse in the lake; the frogs hoarsen.

Now every voice of the hour—

the known, the supposed, the strange,

the mindless, the witted, the never seen—

sing, thrum, impinge, and rearrange

endlessly; and debarred from sleep we wait

for the birds, importantly silent,

for the crease of first eye-licking light,

for the sun, lost long ago and sweet.

By the lake, locked black away and tight,

we lie, day creatures, overhearing night.

Lesson 6: Allusion

Fat Is Not a Fairy Tale by Jane Yolen
I am thinking of a fairy tale,
Cinder Elephant,
Sleeping Tubby,
Snow Weight,
where the princess is not
anorexic, wasp-waisted,
flinging herself down the stairs.
I am thinking of a fairy tale,
Hansel and Great,
Repoundsel,
Bounty and the Beast,
where the beauty
has a pillowed breast,
and fingers plump as sausage.
I am thinking of a fairy tale
that is not yet written,
for a teller not yet born,
for a listener not yet conceived,
for a world not yet won,
where everything round is good:
the sun, wheels, cookies, and the princess.

Assignment: How do the allusions here reinforce thetheme conveyed by the poem?

Lesson 7: Speaker and Tone

The speaker is the voice of a poem, or the role the poet plays in the poem. The speaker may be the poet, or a fictional person, animal, or object the poet pretends to be. Playing a role in the poem enables the poet to state a message or explain a feeling more clearly than speaking as him or herself. For example, one poet may speak as an eagle to describe the wonders of flight. Another poet may pretend to be a mother in order to express an ideal of unselfish love.

When reading a poem, it is important to understand the speaker’s tone or attitude toward the subject of the poem. Is the speaker being honest or “tongue-in-cheek”? Is the speaker biased? Is the speaker trying to prove a point? Recognizing the speaker and the speaker’s tone is an important step toward “reading between the lines.” Knowing a wealth of common adjectives used to describe tone is an excellent way to improve your analytical skills. Look at the following list of words and circle any you do not know the meaning of. For homework tonight, look up their meanings.

Pessimistic

Critical (with respect to the author’s tone)

Humorous

Scornful

Reflective

Melancholy

Joyous

Sympathetic

Contemplative

Optimistic

Perplexed

Ridiculing

Conspiratorial

Hopeful

Mournful

Skeptical

Biased/Unbiased

Ambiguous

Still I Rise by Maya Angelou

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may trod me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?

Why are you beset with gloom?

'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells

Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,

With the certainty of tides,

Just like hopes springing high,

Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?

Bowed head and lowered eyes?

Shoulders falling down like teardrops.

Weakened by my soulful cries.

Does my haughtiness offend you?

Don't you take it awful hard

'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines

Diggin' in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes,

You may kill me with your hatefulness,

But still, like air, I'll rise.

Out of the huts of history's shame

I rise

Up from a past that's rooted in pain

I rise

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,

Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear

I rise

Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear

I rise

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,