Poetry Explication
World Literature Poetry Explication Assignment
The Assignment:
Write a four-page explication of two short poems from our assigned texts in Week 5 (research optional). Choose two poems that you think will work well together, but offer contrast on some levels (either in form or in content). Poems covered deeply in class discussion are not eligible for this assignment. Pick poems we did not cover in depth.
About Explication:
Explication is the unraveling of a poem (or story or play), analyzing the poem word-by-word, line-by-line, or stanza-by-stanza. In unfolding the poem, address any literary devices you see: simile and metaphor, allusion, rhyme, rhythm, repetition, onomatopoeia, form, and other techniques (see Poetry.org). How do these all contribute to the overall message of the poem?
An explication is a way for you to slow down and focus on the detail. Often, a poem that you find confusing will make sense once you take some time to examine it piece by piece.
Cite all sources according to MLA and include a Works Cited page.
Introduction: Include title (in quotation marks), author, dates, brief background of the author if necessary and relevant, a brief summary of the plot (situation), or literal level of the poem, and your thesis, which is an interpretation (argument) of the meaning you see.
Body Paragraphs: Systematically go through the poem showing the techniques stated in your thesis and showing how they relate to the poet's argument. Brief quotes should be incorporated into your sentences to clarify your point. Do not, under any circumstance, quote the entire poem within the paper. If you quote three or fewer lines, an inline quote, you should introduce the quote with a signal phrase, and then quote the section of the poem, indicating line breaks with a "/" and stanza breaks with a "//".
Author writes, "quoted line/quoted next line" (871).
To quote more than three lines, use a block quote. In either case, follow the quote with a parenthetical reference of the line number(s). And then, make sure that you follow the quote with a close analysis/unpacking of the meaning. If you quote there must be a reason, and it is your job to "unpack" what is inside the quote-don't expect readers to see your points only based on the quote.
Conclusion: Here you pull the paper together and reaffirm your thesis. You could discuss how the poem relates to real life and/or use this paragraph to disagree with the poet's argument if you wish. Avoid, "I think..." or "I feel..." language. Be specific with word choice and avoid vague words like unique, interesting, amazing, etc.
Style: Keep your sentences focused on the poem itself. Include transitions where appropriate to avoid jumping quickly from one topic to the next.
Additional Style Tips: While the explication tends to be a chronological progression, consider the organization of the paper. How can you group your observations? This, as any other formal paper, should be a multiple-draft project where your initial observations are organized into main points, and these main points are then focused with a thesis in the intro, with topic sentences in the body paragraphs, and finished with a conclusion.
Research: Use research to help you uncover questions about history, cultural references, etc. You can also look for any scholarly critical work on the works as well. Limit your research; I am more interested in what you have to think.
Strategies:
• Use The Method to find repeating words, categories of words, binary oppositions.
• Look for the story/plot of the poem as a basis, then work with the details to see if they support that plot.
• Think about irony-perhaps the speaker of the poem is not really meaning what he/she is saying. Be suspicious at times.
• Use the poetry glossary from Poets.org
• Find areas of comparison and contrast between the poems, find linking ideas so that your essay does not seem like two separate parts.
Guidelines:
• 4-5 complete pages plus Works Cited page
• 11 or 12 point font
• 1" margins
Suggestions for Writing About the Genre of Poetry
WHAT IS THE POEM ABOUT? What is the theme of the poem? Is it similar in subject or theme to other poems you have studied? Could it be compared to/with them?
WHO IS THE SPEAKER OF THE POEM? Is the speaker addressing a particular person (auditor)? On what occasion?
WHAT IS THE TONE OF THE POEM? Is it consistent or does it change in the course of the poem?
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE LANGUAGE OF THE POEM? Is it figurative or literal? Is the poet using figures of speech? What kinds and to what effect? Does the poem contain images? Can the poem be read in more than one way?
DOES THE POEM CONTAIN RHYMES? If so, what is the rhyme scheme? Are lines end-stopped or enjambed (forced to the next line)? How does the rhyme serve to emphasize the meaning? The connections between certain words? What other notable features are there about the sound of the poem?
IS THE POEM WRITTEN IN METRE? If so, what metre (the rhythm of the poem)? Is it regular or irregular? What is its effect? What is the effect of any irregularities? Is there more than one way to scan the poem? What different meanings to these scansions suggest?
DOES THE POEM CONTAIN ANY LITERARY ALLUSIONS? Is it influenced by earlier poems? Can it be compared to other poems you have read by the same poet or different poets?