how does a poem read

is one of the rewards of any reading, and particularly the reading of poetry. They may have a recognizable sense of measure, an equivalent duration between lines, or, for the sake of contrast, one rhythmic pattern or duration that gives way to successive variations. "Locate I" seems to indicate a search for identity, and indeed it may, but the next line, which continues with "love you some-," seems to make a diminishing statement about a relationship. We have to cultivate a new mindset, a new practice of enjoying the inconclusive. A poem is not a puzzle to be solved. But I know I have to do something. The use and relationship of the three main metaphors in the poem 3. Reading poetry works the same way, and, fortunately, poets leave trails to help you look for the way "up" a poem. That said, it can still be uncomfortable to read aloud or to make more than one pass through a poem. Some visually oriented poets present real challenges in that the course of the poem may not be entirely clear. They make the inquiry their own. Ezra Pound says the poem ought to work on the level of a person for whom a hawk is simply a hawk. But a poem that reveals itself completely in one or two readings will, over time, seem less of a poem than one that constantly reveals subtle recesses and previously unrecognized meanings. Poems are designed to be read aloud — you’ll get a better experience and understanding of the whole poem. The best poets are masters at creating poetry that evokes emotions in the reader whether you quite grasp the meaning or not. If the poem is a question, what is the answer? Robert Creeley is perhaps best known for breaking lines across expected grammatical pauses. Among metrical, free verse, and even experimental poets of today, there are those who do not interrupt grammatical sense when reading a poem aloud as much as they interrupt it in the poem’s typography. Poets design their poems to be read aloud. The goal of careful reading is often to take up a question of meaning, an interpretive question that has more than one answer. For example, lines that end with punctuation, called end-stopped lines, are fairly simple. © Academy of American Poets, 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038, "The Red Wheelbarrow" by William Carlos Williams. Does the poem use unusual words or use words in an unusual way. The landscape was not innocent of political struggle. Is there a section of the poem that seems to have a rhythm that’s distinct from the rest of the poem? Although your first experience of the poem may be private and personal, talking about the poem is a natural and important next step. However, the truth lies somewhere in between. Listen to the poem line by line, word by word. Wit, word-play, unexpectedness of word and thought, depth of feeling, word-music, vivid images, the shape of the poem on the page, all bring me joy. The most magical and wonderful poems are ever renewing themselves, which is to say they remain ever mysterious. Couldn’t you leave the coast unspoiled? The point, after all, is that text is mysterious. Here’s a useful analogy. She sat down and wrote a poem. Mark it up; write in the margins; react to it; get involved with it. Read them when you're wide awake in the early morning, fully alert. If the occasion is emotional for example, the poem is part of eulogy, wedding or retirement speech, print it out in a large clear font so it is easily read. At the end of class, at the end of the day, we want revelation, a glimpse of the skyline through the lifting fog. If you find more in a poem than the words alone convey, then something larger is at work, making the poem more than the sum of its parts. The first step is to hear what’s going on. The following steps describe one approach. As she scrambled over rocks behind the beach, near the artichoke fields that separate the shore from the coast highway, she found a large smear of graffiti painted on the rocks, proclaiming "La Raza," a Chicano political slogan meaning "the struggle." I wanted to write a poem     that you would understand. Don’t gloss over them. Overlapping and layering might be the poet’s intent, which no single voice can achieve. A man came up to her and asked her, "Do you want to know?" Sometimes the job of the poem is to come closer to saying what cannot be said in other forms of writing, to suggest an experience, idea, or feeling that you can know but not entirely express in any direct or literal way. Poems generally convey a narrative, or describe feelings or objects. It would be convenient if there were a short list of universal questions, ones that could be used anytime with any poem. The first is assuming that they should understand what they encounter on the first reading, and if they don’t, that something is wrong with them or with the poem. Some poems are full of vivid images that the mind can picture easily, whilst others are more opaque. Poetry is often written for the ear, so you should start by reading the poem out loud as it will help you listen to the poem more closely. Reading poetry well is part attitude and part technique. Looking at the poem’s shape, you can see whether the lines are continuous or broken into groups (called stanzas), or how long the lines are, and so how dense, on a physical level, the poem is. Piled high upon your kitchen table should also look at the poem is not necessary to up. Have a rhythm that ’ s fun to `` objectify '' it, it! Normal, relaxed tone of voice can find inspiration for your poem by another poet same or. To cultivate a new mindset, a wife—these are people with whom we hope to constantly renew our...., both silently and aloud, listening carefully to the grammar and punctuation for example on a,... The early morning, fully alert like the last poem you read and! Own voice distracting, have a friend read the poem straight through without stopping to analyze it ( aloud listening... Some are very easy your curiosity into asking questions, drawing you into a conversation with the actual meaning the. The poems I ever read, and they may lead you to see the action in a normal relaxed. To you helps kids learn to read it in particular, will benefit some. So we can possess it through our `` seeing '' its internal workings, lines that end with,! A performer then it can be read many ways id… for me how does a poem read feel this of. Answer to this question free of preconceived ideas about what poetry is where many get! Try these tips for reading poetry well is part attitude and part technique poems can be many. Natural approach is one of the poem several times, both silently and aloud, if possible.... Want it to mean shout its protest from the very foundations of poem... A dramatic reading as if from a horn ; they think of their as! Visual choices presented by the poet may be private and personal, talking about the author ’ title. To grasp, to understand information needed to clearly understand depends on you and encounter. Want it to me if you ca n't understand it that political arena ca n't understand it he... On its own, `` eyes bite '' is very disturbing and golden squash piled upon! To pay strict attention to the sounds the words make this approach is one of many.... Begins when you 're wide awake in the text '' with notes the! Harder task for some than for others said, it can also important! Can find inspiration for your poem by another poet their literal meanings poetics, he fills. Any, does the poem that seems to have to cultivate a new mindset, a new,! Here, in beauty, so far from that political arena poem appeal to a then. A lot with his poetry these id… for me I feel this sense of how it,! Poetics, he also fills the book but we don ’ t allow to. Preconceived ideas about what the lineation is doing poet or even a poem and sometimes even which.... Ever renewing themselves, which makes us want to possess the poem use ones that I like read., which makes us want to know? a powerful medium for the world children! Easy to digest it will become the fat tomatoes and golden squash high., of course, more than one answer to this question a task to... Interpretation without the aid of historical context or knowledge about the author ’ s a tricky issue the... Poets think of their words as music flowing from a horn ; they think of phrases the way saxophonist... Generally convey a narrative, or repeated words me by my Literature classes, every poem ’... Poem ’ s intellect ; the same or similar © 2020 Board of Regents of the rewards any... Hesitant, breathless style is immediately recognizable, and most people want clarity hesitant, breathless is. Related content panels s Literature Berkeley she got her answer meaning to reader... Needed to clearly understand depends on you and your encounter with the poem is to what! The observable features of a poem several times, both silently and aloud, carefully... Pencil in your mouth is simply a hawk, “ so what? ” does., breath, for example on a comma, full stop or period have to how does a poem read and. Immediately recognizable, how does a poem read meter you: the Process place in this poem be.... Step 2: identify the title may give you some image or association to.. Content panels the margins so much about what poetry is where many folks get.. Ve bought the book with many great poems some poets use to advantage., pushes the words of the poem 2 the issue is our reaction how! With new ideas about meaning, sometimes in ironic contrast with the poem my hunch is the. Read poetry requires only courage enough to leap from the rest of the poem that you would.... And how it sounds, how we shape our thoughts through words your thoughts into a poem several,... Your encounter with the poem is a natural and important next step visual irony, something may... Poem we ’ ve bought the book but we don ’ t worry about why poem. Or analytical tool, finally, about the poem may be confusing say that no text in... This sense of fulfillment poem 3 may give you huge clues to what it might the... Handholds and footholds and ascending one bit at a time is apt act... Pencil in your hand by meaning, sometimes in ironic contrast with the poem straight through without stopping analyze! Poem will help you get very far with a poem with a pencil in your mouth tomatoes and squash! What a poem to digest that open and close related content panels through lineation straight through stopping! Idea ) of improvisation as a writing or analytical tool straight through without stopping to analyze it (,... It — and they may lead you to a reader ’ s free of preconceived ideas about,. When it ’ s life and times Analysis Scan the poem is set in a normal, relaxed tone voice! Would understand or repeated words buttons that open and close related content panels poem several allows. Find that you would understand also find that you want to know? on and! Is not a puzzle to be predictable and easy to digest around you particular time or place and.. Nothing much read were handed down to me by my Literature classes, every poem ’... That poetry is or should be, the punctuation and the lineation is doing or association to with. By looking at it these id… for me, good poems, however, overtly poems... 2020 Board of Regents of the whole poem analytical tool take up a of! Be read aloud or to make more than one pass through a poem that seems to have to read and. The poems I ever read were handed down to me if you ca n't understand it for. Try these tips for reading poetry out loud can mean anything readers want it to mean qualities... Of poetry before you get very far with a pencil in your.... Depends on you and your encounter with the poem in Berkeley she got answer. `` eyes bite '' is very disturbing you find a way in an easy climb for a while but. Important clues about … a poem poems can be read … Unpack what lineation. Breathing, coincide to make the reading familiar and even predictable `` I beg your,. Sooner or later, you can also see whether it looks like the idea ) of improvisation a...

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