When Reading and Writing Poetry, It Is Important to Understand the Many Purposes of Poetry

When reading and writing poetry, it is important to understand the many purposes of poetry.

Some poets write poetry for a reader. Some poets want to make the reader feel. Others want the reader to think. Some poets hope they can persuade the reader, while other poets simply want to share.

On the other hand, poets often write for themselves. They may want to reflect on an experience or seek answers through writing. Some poets find it exciting to play with language and attempt the more difficult poetic forms that adhere to a specific structure. Finally, some poets view writing poetry as the art of self-expression.

Recognizing the purpose of poetry, why writers write and readers read, is the first step in fully understanding poetry.

Poetry can…

be about anything… yes, anything… so, it does not have to be thoughtful
make us laugh or make us cry… make us feel something…
make us think… that’s where the thoughtful, complex poems come from
play with language… why? because it is fun … how? wait for it…
express emotion… just a feeling
explain emotion… more than just feeling … an exploration of feeling
pose more questions than answers… a poem does not have to reach a conclusion
connect us with other people … through experiences, through emotion, through thoughts
share experiences … we are the authors of our own life stories
help us through difficult times … give us understanding, give us advice, give us hope
present answers to life’s many questions … Why? How? Why? How? Why? How?
tell stories … oh the power of imagination
entertain … yes, shocking right? People read poetry for fun!
offer a different perspective … maybe you never realized…
describe an experience … good, bad, little, big, anything goes…
help us remember what matters … friends, family, the loss in our lives
help us celebrate what matters … friends, family, the gifts in our lives
heal us … our hearts and our minds
make simple observations about the world … the sunset
make complex observations about the world … life is…
persuade … any songwriter would agree
be anything… be everything … be nothing …

Unlike prose (where writing is written in complete sentences and paragraphs), poetry is written in lines:

Lines can be really really long to reflect a long or slow or complex thought or feeling

Or short

A line can even be one

Word

The reader notices the words

at the end of each line, so poets

Will break up lines to stress specific words

The first word,

especially at the beginning of a stanza, can also have power.

If you really want a word to be

powerful

give it its own line

A line in poetry does not have to be a complete sentence. In fact, full sentences are often broken up over several lines. Where the poet stops a line is called the line break. Furthermore, sometimes poets use words and phrases rather than full sentences. It depends on the poem.

A stanza is a poem’s paragraph, or clump of lines. Stanza one in the example above includes lines one through four. Stanza two includes lines five through nine. Circle stanza three. Unlike prose, stanzas are not always grouped by topic but can be if that is what the poet wants. Poets arrange the words on the page in many ways and for many reasons, which we will discuss later.

While the poet writes the poem, the narrator in a poem is most often called the speaker. At times, the terms narrator and persona are also used. Sometimes, the speaker is the poet. Other times though, the speaker is more like a character created by the poet. Speakers can even be objects! Figuring out who the speaker represents, the poet, a character or object, can help a reader understand the purpose and the meaning of a poem.

While there are many purposes of poetry, all poems have tone and mood. Tone is the poet’s attitude towards whatever the poet is writing about. The topic of the poem is referred to as the subject. Tone does not have to be strong or overpowering. The tone of a poem could just be reflective or observant. On the other hand, a poem could have an angry or passionate tone too. Review the list at the end of this chapter to help you understand possible tones and moods poems can have. Notice most tones and moods are emotions and feelings.

Chapter One: The Basics (continued)

In addition, mood is the feeling the reader has, created intentionally by the poet. How does the poet want the reader to feel after reading his or her poem? Mood is not the same as tone, but many readers confuse the two. Mood = me (the reader). Tone = poet (both have Ts). A poem could have an eerie, inspirational, thoughtful or uncertain mood.

Tone and mood are very much connected to the author’s purpose for writing his or her poem. If a writer, for example, is simply writing a poem to share a beautiful moment in nature, the tone will reflect that by being thoughtful, awestruck or appreciative. However, if a poet writes a poem to present a world problem, the tone may be determined, persuasive or even frustrated, depending in how the poet feels about that problem.

Poets express how they feel by choosing their words carefully. The same is true for how a poet creates mood for the reader. Words are the poet’s primary tool, so understanding the power of words in poetry is the next step in mastering this challenging genre.

Chapter One Questions:

Terms to Know:

line:
stanza:
speaker/narrator/persona:
tone:
subject:
mood:

Based on the bulleted list above and your own opinion, what are the five most common reasons poets write poems?

______

According to the article, the speaker in the poem can be all of the following except

The poet
A character
A tone
An object

Chapter One Questions (continued):

Tone and mood of a poem are directly connected to the

Purpose
Lines
Stanzas
Line break

What is the third line in the second stanza in the “poem” above that begins Chapter One?

“give it its own line”
“will break up lines to stress certain words”
“if you really want a word to be”
“word”

According to the article, line break is defined as

The last line of a poem that indicates the poem is done
The last word of a stanza
When a poet uses a comma or dash in the middle of a line
Where the poet stops a line, specifically the last word of each line

Words are by far the most powerful tools a poet has when creating poetry. Think about writing as a grape. Poetry is the raisin. All the extra words are sucked out and we are left with the heart of the writing. We are left with the raisin. The words, then, are so very important. Each is selected with care, as there is no room for any extra, unnecessary fluff.

When a writer carefully selects words, this is called diction. In poetry, diction refers to the choices writers make regarding using slang, descriptive words, emotionally charged words and words with certain sounds. Diction, as a poetic device, can be found in almost every poem. As you read a poem, look for key words that seem really important. Reading poetry is really an exploration of the words the poet chooses. When you identify words that seem important, you do not need to understand or explain the importance immediately. Identifying key words though can help you peel away layers of meaning and get one step closer to understanding the poem.

Likewise, a word’s connotation, or emotional meaning, can be really important in poetry to help the poet develop multiple levels of meaning and feeling. Connotation is also vital in establishing point of view and the author’s purpose. Calling someone “mother,” “mom” or “mommy” for example impacts the impression the reader gets of the speaker’s relationship with his or her female parent. Once you identify words that seem important, consider their connotations and what they may imply.

We call the use of descriptive words and phrases that engage the senses imagery. Words that convey sights, sounds, smells, tastes and touch (feeling) are powerful in poetry because the purpose of poetry often involves conveying or describing a feeling or experience for the reader. The use of sensory language helps a poet share those feelings and experiences that are very unique to the poet. It allows the reader to see the world through the eyes of the poet for a moment.

As you can imagine, using precise language and capturing an idea with the perfect word becomes very important if the poet is to achieve his or her purpose. As a reader, realizing the importance of every word in the poem is the first step in understanding poetry.

Describing abstract emotions like love and fear can be challenging. People experience love and fear differently. So, how do poets capture such unique experiences in concrete ways their readers can understand? Throughout history, people have described difficult concepts by offering comparisons. Love, for example, could be a “razor that [causes] your soul to bleed.” Ouch! Yeah, love hurts. On the other hand, love could be a “flower and [the one I love] its only seed.” In other words, the only one I love is you and only you have the power to make my love grow. Aw how cute. Do you see how the use of comparison, in this case metaphor, helps establish both speakers’ unique experiences with love?

Chapter Two: Words (continued)

When writers use language that is not meant to be taken literally, they are using figurative language. Figurative language plays a big role in poetry because poets are trying to convey unique emotions and experiences. Poets use figurative language techniques such as simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification and symbol.

When an author establishes a comparison at the beginning of a poem and develops that same comparison throughout the poem, it is called extended metaphor. The initial comparison can be presented though as a simile or metaphor. The author will extend the comparison throughout the poem by describing in more detail the concrete object that represents the more abstract concept. In the song “The River,” for example, a dream (as in a goal) is “like a river.” The songwriters Garth Brooks and Victoria Shaw continue describing the river and how it has “rough waters” like the challenges one may encounter when following one’s dreams. The comparison develops throughout the entire song.

“Words…words… words…” - a famous quote from Shakespeare. Words have power. In poetry, they are the ice cream in your ice cream sundae, the apples in your apple pie, the football in the football game, the sun in summer and the snow in winter. Without words, ya’ll don’t have no poetry yo! C u l8r. Lol.

Chapter Two Questions:

Terms to Know:

diction:
connotation:
imagery:
figurative language:
simile:
metaphor:
hyperbole:
personification:
symbol:
extended metaphor:

Chapter Two Questions (continued):

Which piece of textual evidence explains what poets do when faced with the challenge of describing abstract emotions?

A. “look for key words that seem really important.”

B. “describe[d] difficult concepts by offering comparisons.”

C. “consider their connotations and what they imply.”

D. “use descriptive words and phrases that engage the senses.”

According to Chapter Two, precise word choice can do all of the following except:

A. engage the readers’ senses through imagery.

B. establish the author’s purpose and point of view through connotation.

C. convey unique emotions and experiences through figurative language.

D. create extra, unnecessary fluff through extended metaphors.

The main idea of Chapter Two is:

A. Poetry is filled with many types of words.

B. Poets must deal with emotions and imagery.

C. Poets would be lost without words.

D. Poetry is an extended metaphor.

While words are certainly the primary tool a poet has, language is full of noise, full of music. The music words make is important in poetry. The technical term for noise elements in poetry is sound. Sound devices in poetry may not change the meaning of a poem, but sound supports the meaning created by the words, similar to the way music functions in movies. Music in movies helps create mood and convey the feelings of the characters.

Music can be relaxing, stimulating, disturbing or inspiring. Paired with images, music can bring new meaning to the reader. We will view some images paired with music to help understand and examine the power of sound on our interpretations.

The music of poetry lies in the sounds the words make. Think about each letter of the alphabet being an instrument that helps a poet make music. In the English language, there are soft sounds like ______. Then, there are hard sounds like ______. In a poem, a poet can support the meaning that is established through the words with carefully selected sounds.

Furthermore, when a poet uses sound devices in poetry, the lines that contain those sound devices are naturally highlighted because the sound devices make those lines stand out. When a poet repeats the beginning sound of a word several times in one line or over several, this is called alliteration. If a poet repeats the consonant sound several times in a line or over several, no matter where the sound is in each word, this is called consonance. A similar concept is also used for vowel sounds; it is called assonance, a repeated vowel sound within a line or over several. Assonance can be very difficult for a poet to use and a reader to find. Alliteration and consonance are far more common.

Once again, these sound devices when used act like a highlighter for the poet, drawing attention to the lines and words that contain the sound devices. Sound devices can make a reader focus more on an important line or word in the poem.

Moreover, sound devices help emphasize the meaning of the poem. A poem about spring, for example, may be full of sound devices to mimic the beauty and life spring brings. A poem about a fire may be full of “sss” “kkk” “ppp” to mimic the sound a fire makes. A poem about water may echo the sound of the water upon the sand.

Finally, a poet may simply view the use of sound devices as a challenge waiting to be won. When a poet uses sound devices, not only does he have to find the perfect words but then those words must contain certain sounds. This is challenging; therefore, it is possible that when a poem contains sound devices, it simply reveals the talent of the poet and nothing more.

Chapter Three: Sound (continued)

Repetition is another poetic device we can list under sound. Repetition is obvious. Its meaning is obvious. If a poet repeats something, that something is important. Like the chorus in a song, often the repeated words and/or lines help establish the theme of the poem.

Repetition can create a rhythm as well. Through repetition, a poet can force the reader to read the poem in a certain way, which often produces a stronger tone and mood.

Rhyme functions in a similar way. Poems that rhyme, called rhymed verse, force a specific rhythm when reading. Forced rhythms can create light-hearted poems that make you want to dance, passionate poems full of determination and willpower or thoughtful poems that force the reader to pause after each line and reflect on the words.

All in all, sound devices, while on the surface may seem a simple as “Sally sells seashells by the seashore,” offer a poet a world full of possibilities to layer a poem with meaning and music. As readers, exploring the sounds a poem makes is just one more way of celebrating the genre of poetry, unraveling the many mysteries of a poem and discovering the hidden clues a poet leaves for us within each line and stanza.

Chapter Three Questions:

Terms to Know:

sound:
alliteration:
consonance:
assonance:
repetition:
rhymed verse:

Sound devices in poetry can do all of the following except:

Make a movie with music
Convey a speaker’s feelings
Establish tone and mood
Emphasize an idea presented in a line

Which of the following is the best example of consonance helping to emphasize imagery?

“sunlight streams through a single window”
“long grain is softening/ in the water”
“blueblack cold/ then with cracked hands that ached”
“phenomenal woman/that’s me”

Chapter Three Questions (continued):