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1.1 What is Poetry?

Poetry can be defined as 'literature in a metrical form' or 'a composition forming rhythmic
lines'. In short, a poem is something that follows a particular flow of rhythm and meter.
Compared to prose, where there is no such restriction, and the content of the piece flows
according to story, a poem may or may not have a story, but definitely has a structured
method of writing.

1.2 Elements of Poetry
There are several elements which make up a good poem. Although it is not mandatory for a
poet to use all these elements or devices, they form an important aspect of poetry.

Alliteration: This is also used in several poems for sound effect. Several words in the
sentence may begin with the same alphabet or syllable sound. For example, in the sentence
"Many minute miniature moments," the sound of the alphabet 'M' (phonetic sound /m/) is
repeated in all the four words continuously. When you say those words aloud, the sound
effect generated is called Alliteration.

Contrast: To explain how two things differ. To compare and contrast is to explain how two
things are alike and how they are different.

Diction: Diction is important in poetry because the choice of words in a work can convey
feeling, action, or attitude. Diction can be analyzed from both a character and writer's
perspective.

Imagery: Imagery is also one of the important elements of a poem. This device is used by
the poet for readers to create an image in their imagination. Imagery appeals to all the five
senses. For e.g., when the poet describes, 'the flower is bright red', an image of a red flower
is immediately created in the reader's mind.
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Metaphor: A metaphor is a method of comparison where the words 'like' and 'as' are not
used. To modify the earlier example, if the statement had been 'Her laughter, a babbling
brook', then it would be the use of Metaphor.

Meter: This is the basic structural make-up of the poem. Do the syllables match with each
other? Every line in the poem must adhere to this structure. A poem is made up of blocks of
lines, which convey a single strand of thought. Within those blocks, a structure of syllables
which follow the rhythm has to be included. This is the meter or the metrical form of poetry.

Onomatopoeia: Where sounds are spelled out as words; or, when words describing
sounds actually sound like the sounds they describe.
Ouch! EEK! Crash!

Personification: Where inanimate objects or abstract concepts are seemingly
endowed with human self-awareness; where human thoughts, actions, perceptions and
emotions are directly attributed to inanimate objects or abstract ideas.

Rhyme: A poem may or may not have a rhyme. When you write poetry that has rhyme, it
means that the last words or sounds of the lines match with each other in some form. Rhyme
is basically similar sounding words like 'cat' and 'hat', 'close' and 'shows', 'house' and
'mouse', etc.

Rhythm: This is the music made by the statements of the poem, which includes the
syllables in the lines. The best method of understanding this is to read the poem aloud, and
understand the stressed and unstressed syllables. Listen for the sounds and the music
made when we hear the lines spoken aloud.

Simile: A simile is a method of comparison using the words 'like' or 'as'. When, in a poem,
something is said to be 'like' another, it means that the poet is using Simile to convey his
feelings by comparing it to something. For example, in the statement 'Her laughter was like a
babbling brook', the poet is comparing the laughter of the girl to the sound made by a
babbling brook. Note that 'babbling brook' is also an example of Alliteration.
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Stanza: Stanza in poetry is defined as a smaller unit or group of lines or a paragraph in a
poem. A particular stanza has a specific meter, rhyme scheme, etc. Based on the number of
lines, stanzas are named as couplet (2 lines), Tercet (3 lines), Quatrain (4 lines), Cinquain (5
lines), Sestet (6 lines), Septet (7 lines), Octave (8 lines).

Theme: This is what the poem is all about. The theme of the poem is the central idea that
the poet wants to convey. It can be a story, or a thought, or a description of something or
someone; anything that the poem is about.

Tone: The authors attitude toward the subject; the mood created by all the elements in the
poem.


The elements of poetry are an essential part of the structure of a good poem. Of course, it
does not mean, that all poems must have all these elements. It depends entirely upon the
poet, who has all these tools at his disposal to use in order to convey his ideas effectively.












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2.1 Local Poem

In the Midst of Hardship by Latiff Mohidin

At dawn they returned home
their soaky clothes torn
and approached the stove
their limbs marked by scratches
their legs full of wounds
but on their brows
there was not a sign of despair
The whole day and night just passed
they had to brave the horrendous flood
in the water all the time
between bloated carcasses
and tiny chips of tree barks
desperately looking for their sons
albino buffalo that was never found

They were born amidst hardship
and grew up without a sigh or a complaint
now they are in the kitchen, making
jokes while rolling their ciggarete leaves




The poem is written in free verse and has three irregular stanzas. The poet uses simple but
effective language to convey his message. Imagery, contrast and good diction are used to
bring his poem to life.

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Literary Devices Imagery
i. The images associated with a flood dead floating
carcasses, broken tree parts, heavy water ang rain.
ii. The picture of villagers relaxing in the kitchen after a days
work leisurely smoking and talking.
Contrast
i. Between the cold weather, chilly flood waters and the heat
from the stove and their warm fellowship as they enjoy a
cigarette.
ii. Between two types of destruction caused by the flood, the
big (bloated carcasses) and the small (chips of tree barks).

Diction
i. In Stanza 1, the adjective soaky implies that the villagers
were drenched to the skin.
ii. In Stanza 2, horrendous flood allows the reader to visualize
that the flood was tremendous in its destruction.
iii. The adverb desperately shows how frantically the farmers
were looking for their sons albino buffalo.

Theme A flood drama and its effects.
Poverty and hardship.
Optimism and courage in adversity.
Tone Understanding and sympathetic
The writer understands and admires the villagers for their
positive and cheerful attitude.




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2.2 Foreign Poem

Nature by H.D. Carberry


We have neither Summer nor Winter
Neither Autumn nor Spring.
We have instead the days
When the gold sun shines on the lush green canefields-
Magnificently.
The days when the rain beats like bullet on the roofs
And there is no sound but thee swish of water in the gullies
And trees struggling in the high Jamaica winds.
Also there are the days when leaves fade from off guango trees
And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the sun.
But best of all there are the days when the mango and the logwood blossom
When bushes are full of the sound of bees and the scent of honey,
When the tall grass sways and shivers to the slightest breath of air,
When the buttercups have paved the earth with yellow stars
And beauty comes suddenly and the rains have gone.




The poem is written in free verse with no definite rhyme scheme. The poet uses simile,
personification, onomatopoeia, imagery and metaphor to convey the beauty and wonder of
nature in Jamaica.


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Literary Devices
Smile
i. rain beats like bullets (line 6) highlights the force of the
heavy rain, which resemble the sound of continuous gunfire.
The bad weather can pose a threat to the islanders.
Personification
i. In line 9, the trees are wrestling with the strong winds so that
they can stay upright.
ii. In line 17, the tall grass is like a frail person who is easily
affected by the cool air.
iii. In line 19-20, the buttercups have taken it upon themselves
to cover the earth with their lovely colour.
Onomatopoeia
i. In line 7, the word swish imitates or echoes the sound of
water. We can hear the sound of water moving rapidly in
the gullies.
Imagery
i. Visual gold sun , green canefields , yellow stars
ii. Smell scent of honey
iii. Sound rain beats like bullets , swish of water
iv. Movement tree struggling , tall grass sways ang shivers
Theme The beauty of nature
The seasons of life
Tone Joy and pride
The poet joyfully celebrates the beauty and constant activity in
his beloved Jamaica. He is proud of his island paradise which
he has made his home.


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3.0 Justification

Between the two poems In the Midst of Hardship and Nature, I prefer the local poem In
the Midst of Hardship.
First of all, I chose this poem because it mimics the village where i grown up from.
My experience in such village had taught me how to overcome hardship and challenges and
this in turn helped to build my character. This poem has several moral values in which
people can always learn from it. Firstly, the villagers who have been used to natural
disasters soldiers on despite the physical hurt and emotional toll they have endured. In fact,
they are cheerful as they resume their daily duties without any complaint. Secondly, we must
have both mental and emotional strength if we are to preserve in life which is often fraught
with challenges. If we have a positive attitude and could face the challenges, the challenge
will be less unpleasant and easier to manage. Lastly, with all these practises, we will be
better equipped to walk the long and eventful journey of life. In other words, we can solve
problems bravely and more optimistically.


4.0 Reflection
Upon completion of this coursework, I realised that learning a poem is not only
concerning the beautifulness of the language, but we can learn other skills, for example,
reading. There are diverse objects, stories and people in this world. By the usage of poetry
devices, poets describe them in an interesting way so that it can attract our attention and
increase our curiosity about the story behind. Through the story, poets bring out a lot of
moral values and messages from the poems, which allow people to learn from it.
Poetry can be very powerful. It uses only a few words to demonstrate mental images
or provoke strong feelings. Through this coursework, I noticed that there are a lot of poems
published by the world recognised poets, which we can always learn from. We also learnt
how to make use of the wordings and sentences to construct a poem. There are numerous
poetry devices to make a poem perfect. You may not necessary to use up all the poetry
devices but with only a few of them, you can make the poem very interesting.
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Poetry is more than just words or ABC. It tells us about the attitude of people, the
characteristic of places, the past events and others. Consequently, we can enlarge our
knowledge through the poems. It helps us define the culture and history of a cluster of
people and their steps in the past.
We may learn something about our attitude as human beings. Every time when you
come across with a poem, you will learn different emotions, attitudes, ideas, or relationships
from the words. Always put yourself into the story and think- what are the dos and donts if
you are situated in that situation? In a world where communication is unavoidable, poetry
possesses a unique power. Even though the messages from a poem might be instantly
revealed to you, but the true joy of studying poetry is you can always keep going back to the
same poem over and over again. Interestingly, you will find something new each time when
you read.
In conclusion, poetry is a very good material in education. It allows student to
improve their imagination when creating a story and creativity in using the wordings when
constructing a poems structure.