1. How do I interpret poetry?
Literal Interpretation: reading a story, poem, novel, or
drama for face value. What the author writes is EXACTLY
what he/she means.
Figurative Interpretation: reading a story, poem, novel, or
drama for more than one meaning. The author conveys
something other than the literal. Look for symbols, imagery,
figurative language, etc… to give you a bigger or deeper
meaning.
2. Identifying Author’s Style
Style – the way an author chooses words,
and arranges them in sentences or in lines
of dialogue. Elements of style include the
following:
Imagery - language that appeals to sight, sound, smell,
taste, touch
Dialect - a way of speaking that is characteristic of a
particular region, gender, age group – writers use dialect to
bring characters to life
Tone - writer’s attitude toward the subject, a character, or
the reader
Mood - the atmosphere or feeling of a text
3. Elements of Style Continued
Diction –narrowly defined as a speaker’s (or author’s)
word choice. (Consider why an author might rely on
connotative vs. denotative language).
Syntax - refers to the arrangement – the ordering,
grouping, and placement – of words within a phrase,
clause or sentence.
Short, choppy or even fragmented sentences
are often used to signal an important point, a
shift in direction, or to isolate a particular
detail.
Formal and informal syntax each have their
own place in emphasizing an author’s
purpose, and you must get in the habit of
looking at syntax.
4. Author’s Purpose
Authors write for different reasons:
to persuade – the author’s aim
is to convince the reader that
his/her position is the best one.
Consider editorials and/or fiction
that persuades readers through
characters’ actions/choices.
5. Author’s Purpose (continued)
to entertain – the author’s aim is
to make the reading of the text an
enjoyable experience for the reader.
Consider “feel good” and/or horror
stories.
6. Author’s Purpose (Continued)
to inform – the author’s aim is to
convey valuable information to the
reader. Consider textbooks,
newspaper articles, graphs/charts,
research.
7. Literary Terms/Meinke
Symbol – an object or an action in a
story, poem, novel, or drama that
means more than itself, that stands
for something beyond itself
Free Verse – poetry with no pattern
or rhyme
Repetition –the repeating of words,
phrases, sounds for impact
8. Literary Terms/ Hughes’s Poem
Extended metaphor – a figure of speech
that makes a comparison between two
unlike things without using like or as. It
is developed over several lines or
throughout an entire poem.
Dialect – a way of speaking that is
characteristic of a particular region or
group of people. Writers often use
dialects to bring characters to life.
9. Hughes’s Poem (Continued)
Dramatic Monologue – a type of poem in
which a speaker talks to a silent listener